


It All Started With Apocalypse of the Damned

by UndercoverAvenger



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: (if you're here for the porn; you're gonna be waiting a while), Alpha!Michael Mell, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Bullying, Crushes, Explicit Sexual Content, He gets out of the situation, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Like really slow, M/M, Michael is AnxiousTM, Omega!Rich Goranski, Porn with Feelings, Rich Goranski's Dad Is An Asshole, Rich is anxiousTM, Sexual Harassment, Slow Burn, everybody is okay though, everyone is anxiousTM, expensive headphones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2020-02-04
Packaged: 2021-02-07 17:04:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 39,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21461515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndercoverAvenger/pseuds/UndercoverAvenger
Summary: Even the people who didn't know Rich Goranski well could tell you that he was one of the most traditionally Alpha guys to ever step foot in Middle Borough High. He was strong and stubborn and protective of those he cared about. He was aggressive when it came to chasing down what he wanted, and his family line had no shortage of Alphas. Naturally, he and everyone else expected him to present as one.There's only one problem; Rich presented as an Omega. Now that he's classed as a member of the lowest secondary gender, it seems like the world is against him. Well, all except for Michael Mell, who had essentially taken over as his best friend after the S.Q.U.I.P.  situation.Michael was there for Rich when no one else was, so for them to fall for each other is almost as easy as breathing, but will it be that easy to get together and stay that way?
Relationships: Rich Goranski & Michael Mell, Rich Goranski/Michael Mell
Comments: 12
Kudos: 83





	1. Presentation

High school brought on a slew of issues for every teen; acne, dating trouble, social anxiety, and the panic that comes with finally presenting. Most teens don’t also have to deal with a deranged microchip in their brains in addition to the other things though. Unfortunately for him, Rich Goranski was not like most teens; he had to live with the aftereffects of his deranged S.Q.U.I.P., leaving him feeling phantom jolts of electricity up the length of his spine and issues with opening up to people. At least after he’d ingested the Mountain Dew Red it couldn’t control his actions anymore, leaving him with basically only presenting to worry about.

Rich knew that he was a bit later when it came to presenting than his friends had been, but he wasn’t worried. He figured he was just a late-blooming Beta or something, since Alphas usually presented much sooner and he hadn’t shown any of the symptoms of being an Omega. He shrugged it off, knowing that there was nothing he could do about when he presented.

* * *

  
  
  


Senior year had just started when it finally happened. He’d been hanging out with Michael after school one day when he started feeling abnormally warm. He shook his head slightly, trying to block out the sudden loudness of his surroundings and focus on the game he and the brunet had been playing. Rich was distracted again by the sound of a door slamming upstairs and Michael turned to him as their characters died again.

“You feeling okay, dude?” Michael asked, concerned about his friend’s state. “You usually get pretty focused when we play AoTD, but today you seem kind of out of it.”

Rich swallowed hard and nodded. “I, uh… I think I'm alright. Think I'm just coming down with something.” That was it, right? Just the flu or something? Fevers, headaches, sound and light sensitivity, it was normal.

Michael’s brows furrowed, “Are you okay? Do you want me to drive you home or anything?”

Rich shook his head, “Nah, I'll be alright. I'm probably just overreacting.” While it might have crossed his mind what was really going on, Rich chose to ignore it. “I'll try and focus. Let's just beat this level.”

Michael shrugged, still kind of worried about the shorter brunet, “If you’re sure you feel well enough…” He trailed off, turning back to the TV and pressing start to begin the level again.

Rich pursed his lips and nodded. He could handle this. If he started to feel much worse he'd get a ride home. He was probably just jumping to conclusions. It took another couple of minutes before he caught the smell of something familiar. He couldn't quite place it, but it was still familiar, as faint as it was. “Hey Michael, what was it like when you presented as an Omega?”

Michael didn’t even look away from the screen as he responded, “I didn’t.”

Rich raised an eyebrow as he spared a glance at Michael. “You haven’t presented yet?”

He chuckled, glancing over at Rich. “No, I’ve presented; just not as an Omega. Why do you ask?”

“N-no reason. Then you're a Beta?” He took a deep breath, trying to cool down. Damn, he was really getting a fever.

“Nope,” Michael grinned, “Alpha all the way.” He laughed softly, “Surprised me too, so I can’t really be upset when anyone assumes my rank.” He paused the game, pushing himself to sit up further and dragging his hoodie off before flopping back against his beanbag with a groan, “Is it really hot down here or am I losing my mind?”

“You're a _ what _? There’s no way! You’re way too chill to be an Alpha.” He chuckled awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck. Maybe it wasn't just him being too warm.

Michael tipped his head back laughing, “Yep, that’s a pretty standard reaction. Jeremy couldn’t believe it either, and he was _ there _ when it happened.” He paused, losing himself in his thoughts for a moment, “That was a fucking _ day, _ don’t even get me started.”

Rich smiled, “Yeah? That crazy or that bad?” Whatever that smell was, it was getting stronger. Rich shook his head, breathing starting to get heavier and his headache getting worse.

“I will never be angrier than I was that day; I may have gotten into a shouting match with a banana.” Michael chuckled, “God, I think Jer still has a video of me shouting ‘You think you have more potassium than me? No one has more potassium than Michael fucking Mell!” His laughter started to fade as he noticed the look on Rich’s face. He shifted on his beanbag, leaning closer, “Dude, are you sure you’re okay? You’re shaking.”

Rich tried to laugh, but the sound in his own head hurt. “I… I don't think so.” All of a sudden, thoughts clicked into place. The fever, the smell, the shaking, “Shit… I-I think I'm presenting.” He took a shaky breath and bit his lip, trying to force himself to stop the shivering.

Michael’s eyes widened and he sat back, not wanting his closeness to adversely impact the changes going on with Rich’s hormones. “Fuck,” He groaned, “Goddamnit, how didn’t I smell it- it’s the same as when Jeremy did; I should’ve noticed. I should’ve-” He sighed, running his hands through his hair in frustration before freezing, realizing that his fast movements would only make his scent more prominent. He sighed, slowly getting to his feet and backing away. “I don’t think you’re presenting as an Alpha because that would've happened years ago, and I don’t really know how Betas present, but you’re acting kind of like how Jer did when he presented as an Omega.”


	2. Impossibilities

Rich’s eyes widened. “I-I can't- I'm not- oh god.” Rich gripped his hair, shaking more as realization set in among the emotions. “I'm not an Omega. I can't be. It's not possible.” Tears welled in his eyes as he curled in on himself. His dad was going to kill him, that is if he wasn't disowned first. “How- Why- I don't understand.” He wrapped his arms around himself, a death grip on his shirt, his scent getting stronger by the moment and practically reeking of fear. His eyes locked on the floor, lost in his own thoughts, terrified of what could happen when he got home.

Michael froze for a moment, staring on as one of the most confident boys he knew crumbled in front of him. He blinked and he’d already crossed the distance between them and kneeled before Rich, carefully prying his hands from the fabric of the shirt and holding them tightly with his own, “Hey, hey. You’re okay.” He whispered, keeping his voice soft to try and soothe Rich. “It’ll be okay.” When he realized Rich was blocking him out, Michael groaned internally, hating that he was going to have to use his Alpha control. “Rich, look at me,” he demanded.

Rich froze as Michael's voice pierced his thoughts. He swallowed hard and looked up into the Alpha's eyes. He was still shaking but less so now that his train of thought had been interrupted. He squeezed Michael's hands, using the alpha to keep himself grounded.

Michael grinned gently, “You’re okay. Everything’s going to be okay. This is about your dad, right? He’s an Alpha too?” When Rich nodded, Michael’s grin widened, “Well then there’s no problem; you’ve got a younger, stronger Alpha to back you up. Besides, if you don’t want to risk it, my moms would be fine with you staying here as long as you wanted.” He paused, backtracking, “Or if it makes you uncomfortable to stay in a house with an Alpha, I’m sure Mr. Heere would be okay with you staying there?” He was rambling and he knew it, but he’d do just about anything if he thought it’d make Rich feel better.

Rich shook his head, “No, I-I can't let you. It's not your problem.” He tried to pull his hands away from Michael's and turn his eyes to the floor again. “Someone'll g-get hurt and it'll be my f-fault. No. I can't l-let you guys get in the m-middle of it.” He started shaking again, curling up in a tighter ball.

Michael chuckled, gently turning Rich’s face to get him to look at him again, “Aww, you thought you had a choice.” He rolled his eyes, “I’ve been protecting Jeremy at school since before he presented, now I’m going to be protecting you too, whether you want me to or not.” He let a tiny bit of his Alpha voice seep into his words, showing that he wasn’t to be argued with.

Rich couldn't stop the whine that came from his throat. “You don't understand.” Tears ran down his cheeks. “I don't want you to get hurt.” He looked Michael in the eye and forced his voice to calm and his body to still. “Be careful.”

“I don’t want you to be hurt either, especially for something that’s out of your control,” Michael whispered, wiping the tears from Rich’s cheeks, “But if it makes you feel better, then yes, I promise I’ll be careful.”

Rich nodded sniffled, wiping his face and eyes. Rich took a deep breath, trying to relax before catching more of Michael's scent. He cleared his throat and looked away. “No offense, but you probably shouldn't be this close to me right now.” He smirked, “For one, you reek of pot. For two, I'm a presenting Omega, and you smell really good.” He blinked and thought about the words that had come out of his mouth. “You know what I mean.” His face flushed as he glared at the wall to his left.

Michael looked confused for a moment before realization struck, “Oh!” He stood, backing away quickly, “Sorry, I, uh, I guess I’m just not used to dealing with boundaries like that; Jer is pretty much the only unmated Omega I’m around and he’s basically my brother, so my scent isn’t really, um, a big deal to either of us…” He looked away guiltily.

Rich chuckled, “It's fine. I wouldn't mind normally, but I can kind of smell… well, everything right now.” He held onto the beanbag he was sitting on, trying his best not to reach out for the Alpha. He didn't want much, just affection, to be close, to be able to freely breathe in Michael's scent, but he didn't want to make his friend uncomfortable.

Michael’s gaze shifted away from Rich, catching on his hoodie. He picked up the bright red piece of clothing and dragged it back on, hoping that it would help muffle his scent. “I can understand that much; God, even the thought of getting stoned gave me a migraine the first couple of weeks after I presented,” he joked, hoping he’d be able to take Rich’s mind off of his situation.

Rich swallowed a whine as Michael put the hoodie back on. He liked the Alpha's scent, but he knew it was for the best. “Yeah, pot and an already throbbing headache don't seem like they'd mix too well,” he chuckled. Rich looked around and motioned for the door. “I should probably go before I start feeling any worse.”

Michael nodded, moving to grab his keys, “Okay, I’ll drive you home. I’ll leave the windows down so you aren’t drowning in Michael: the Fragrance.” He joked, leading the way out of his basement.

Rich smirked as he stood up, still shaking a little, but not enough to topple him. “Hey, I never said I didn't like it. I just don't want you to get weirded out. I'm not really thinking straight right now.” He followed Michael up the stairs, watching for the Alpha's moms. He'd rather no one know that didn't need to, not yet.

“It’s just because I’m the first Alpha you’ve smelled since you presented; it’ll balance out again by the next time you see me.” Michael said, basically disregarding the subtle flirting. 

Rich shrugged, “I don't know about that. I guess we'll see.” He followed Michael to the car before climbing into the passenger seat and buckling in. He curled his legs up to his chest, trying to keep to himself as much as possible.

Michael started the car, immediately rolling down the windows like he said he would, trying to keep from overwhelming Rich with his scent. “It should; it was like that for me and Jer. We were the first Alpha and Omega that either of us smelled, but by the next time we saw each other everything was back to normal. Hopefully it’ll work out similarly for you and you’ll be feeling better by Monday,” he explained as he started driving.

Rich shrugged and watched out the windshield. “We can only hope. Hopefully being such a late bloomer won't make it all worse.” The cold breeze from the windows was a welcome change to the heat his skin was producing. The nerves were starting to set in as they got closer to his home. The sooner it was over with, the better. He sighed and looked down at his knees, “Don't… tell anyone, okay? Not yet at least.”

Michael nodded, putting the Cruiser in park, “I won’t; this is about you, so it’s up to you when you want to talk about it.” He glanced over at Rich seriously, “You know that I’m here for you, right?”

Rich looked over at Michael and gave him a small smile. “I know. Thank you.” He wanted to hug the Alpha, but knowing his situation, it was probably best not to. “I should,” he said as he gestured toward the house. “I'll see you on Monday, hopefully.” He stepped out of the car and walked up the steps to the small house, pausing to wave at Michael before going in.


	3. "Fine"

Monday rolled around and Rich hadn't made it to school. Tuesday, still no sign of him. Finally, Wednesday morning rolled around and Rich slowly walked into the school. He kept his head down and was trying not to make eye contact with anyone as he took small steps. When he made it to his locker, he breathed a sigh of relief as he pulled it open, shoving books in and taking notebooks out.

“Rich, hey!” Michael exclaimed, making his way over as he caught sight of the shorter brunet. “You feeling okay now? I know you were gone the past couple of days, so I assume you were still just feeling a little under the weather.” He was careful not to bring up the truth of the matter, carefully choosing his words to avoid talking about it until Rich actually said the words.

Rich nodded, refusing to look at Michael. If he looked him in the eye, Michael would know something was up for sure. “Yeah, feeling much better. Still feeling the migraines, still warm, but they're not as bad this morning.” He shifted and tried not to wince as a bruise on his hip bumped against the edge of the locker.

Michael’s eyes narrowed as he caught the sharp intake of breath when Rich hit the locker and the way he wouldn’t meet his gaze. He glanced around them quickly before lowering his voice, “Rich, don’t lie, did something happen?”

Rich rolled his eyes and shuffled through some stuff in his locker. “Don't worry about it. I'm fine.” He shoved the final notebook he needed into his backpack and closed the locker. He started down the hall, trying to lose Michael in the crowd.

Michael growled under his breath, grabbing onto Rich’s wrist and tugging him into an empty classroom nearby, “Rich, this is me you’re talking too. I can _ tell _ when something’s wrong, and something’s definitely wrong.” His voice was soft, pleading. “I just want to be able to help you; I want you to let me help.”

Rich locked his jaw, looking everywhere but at Michael. He huffed, “There's nothing you can do. You can't just snap your fingers and fix everything. Besides, it's not your problem, and I don't need anymore Alphas around to make things worse.” He swallowed hard, trying to force his voice to stay steady.

“Rich, look at me.” Michael was using his Alpha Voice again. “It was your dad wasn’t it? What did he do?”

Rich's eyes snapped up to Michael's, “Yes, it was and what do you think he did? Stop doing that! I've listened to more Alpha commands than my own thoughts in the last few days, so knock it off!” He huffed and finally broke eye contact. He ran his hand through his hair, flinching when he touched the tender lump on the back of his head.

Michael sighed, “I’ll stop when you start giving me straight answers! We were friends before you presented, what makes you feel like you can’t act like I am now?” His gaze hardened as Rich winced and his jaw flexed angrily. His shoulders squared as he straightened up, “Do me a favor? When Jeremy asks where I am later, just tell him I had something to take care of.” He turned to leave, pausing just before leaving the room, “Oh, and meet me at my car after school, okay?” He left before Rich had a chance to respond.

Rich watched as Michael started to leave, “What are you-” His eyes widened but the Alpha was gone before he could form a sentence. With a sigh, he headed for his class, knowing there was nothing he could do to stop Michael.


	4. Home

When the final bell rang, Rich dragged his feet, not wanting to know exactly what Michael had been up to. When he finally made it outside, most of the other students had already cleared out of the parking lot. He spotted Michael's PT Cruiser across the lot and slowly walked over, keeping his eyes on the asphalt under his feet.

Michael was leaning against the hood of the Cruiser but he looked over as he heard Rich approaching. He smiled, the action tugging slightly at his split lip. “I’m half surprised you actually showed up.”

Rich rolled his eyes, “Well, it was show up or wait for you to call and use your Alpha Voice on me again so I didn't have much of a choice. That, and I'd rather know what kind of a mess you left for me when I got home.” He looked at Michael's split lip and pursed his own. “Are you okay?”

Michael grinned, ignoring the pain in his lip, “You should see the other guy.” He joked, “Besides, there shouldn’t be a mess waiting for you. At least, not after you see what I spent the rest of the day doing.” He moved to open the passenger side door for Rich and gestured for him to get into the car.

Rich swallowed hard, not enjoying the joke. “What did you do?” He huffed, not really wanting to accept the ride but climbing in anyway. Once Michael was in Rich curled back up in the seat like he had done last time. “You don't need to protect me. It's not like this is anything new.”

Michael huffed, “It shouldn’t have been something that happened to begin with. Besides, it’s not like it was anything difficult.” He glanced at Rich from the corner of his eye as he pulled out of the school parking lot, “You’re not the only one keeping secrets, Rich.”

Rich sighed, “Yeah? What secrets are you hiding?” He smirked and leaned against the door, “Are you the head of the mafia and have a hit out on someone, just waiting for the right time to strike?”

Michael rolled his eyes, “Not quite. Long story short, the Alphas in my family are typically much stronger than a normal Alpha would be. Something about a genetic anomaly way back in the line that got passed down or some shit like that.” He took a right turn, pausing slightly before continuing his story, “Y’know how when you first presented, you commented on how strong my scent was? Well, that’s me on suppressants.”

Rich's jaw dropped, “You have got to be fucking with me right now.” He scoffed and ran a hand down his face. “Damn, now you have me curious just how strong it is when you aren't on suppressants.”

Michael chuckled, “I wish I were joking.” He reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a pill bottle, tossing it to Rich. “I’ve been on those since I was about thirteen.”

Rich caught the bottle and looked it over. “Aren’t these some of the strongest suppressants on the market? Dear god, these have to be messing you up after that long. I guess that's one thing you can look forward to when you find a mate. No more of this shit.” He handed the bottle back and shook his head, “Have you ever been off them to see if they're still working?”

He laughed, “The one time I tried it, it was not a good experience.” His grin dropped slightly, “I have been taking it later in the day than I usually do this week, though.”

Rich raised an eyebrow, “Why? Does the time of day really make that much of a difference?” He checked his phone to see what time it was before pocketing it again. “Have you taken it yet today?”

“It makes a difference, sure. Usually my scent starts picking up pretty quickly after the time I usually take it.” Michael shook his head, “I, uh, I forgot this morning.”

Rich rolled his eyes, “And that’s probably also why you’re so aggressive. You should probably take it.” He reached into his backpack, producing a water bottle he had been nursing and refilling all day. “Better safe than sorry, right?”

Michael shrugged, fishing one of the pills out of the bottle and taking the water from Rich. He took the pill quickly, “I’m kind of thankful that I didn’t take it this morning; it was really helpful when it came to dealing with your dad.”

Rich huffed, “You know I'm still mad about that, right? I appreciate you trying to help, but I don't need an Alpha's protection.” He crossed his arms, resting them on his knees.

Michael grinned, pulling into his driveway. “C’mon,” He got out of the car before responding, “I figured you’d still be mad, but I don’t regret what I did.” He shrugged casually, “Besides, now you won’t have to worry about him anymore.” He paused, “Shit, that sounds like I killed him. No, I didn’t kill him.”

Rich rolled his eyes, “I figured you hadn't killed him. Alpha or not I don't think you'd have the heart to kill anyone even if you wanted to. Kick their ass, maybe. Killing someone just isn’t in your character, Mell.” He swung his bag over his shoulder and closed the car door behind him. “You going to tell me what else you've been up to all day?”

“I think I’d rather just show you.” Michael lead the way into the house, but instead of heading down into the basement to his room, he turned and made his way up the stairs. “So, this is something I’d been talking to my moms about for a while, but this kind of just cemented our plans.” He opened one of the doors lining the hallway and flipped on the light, gesturing for Rich to enter the room. He waited for the brunet to pass him before following.

Rich gave Michael a suspicious look as he followed. “What have you and your moms been scheming, Michael?” He hesitantly stepped in and looked around. His belongings were neatly organized around the room. He was dumbstruck as he walked around the room, touching everything with gentle, shaking hands. 

“After our little conversation earlier, I went to your house to talk to your dad. Needless to say, he wasn’t pleased, but I used my, uh, little secret to get him to back off. I got your stuff and came back to set up the room.” He gestured around the room, “Welcome home, Rich.”


	5. Thanks

After a few moments, Rich walked back over to Michael, wrapping him in a tight hug. “You really didn't need to do all of this.”

Michael smiled, hugging Rich back, “Maybe not, but I’m glad I did.”

Rich buried his nose in Michael's jacket, “Thank you.” It took a moment for him to realize he was still holding Michael. He let go and stepped back. “Sorry, instinct, I guess.”

Michael shrugged it off, not thinking much of it, “It’s fine; both of my moms are really affectionate, so I’m pretty used to being hugged.”

Rich nodded, “Yeah, it's just not normal for me, I guess.” He rubbed the back of his neck, face flushing a bit. “Guess this means you're stuck with me now.”

“I won’t be ‘stuck with you,’” Michael protested, “I love having you around, dude! Now it’s just a sleepover that never ends.”

Rich scoffed, “Uh huh, then you'll have nowhere to run when I start harassing you.” He smirked, “As long as you stop using that Alpha Voice on me, there shouldn't be a problem.”

Michael rolled his eyes, “As long as you stop trying to carry the weight of the world, I won’t need to use it.” He paused, “Shit, I should probably make an appointment with my doctor about upping my dosage since you’ll be in such close quarters with me now. My moms won’t be an issue since they’re both mated, but with me being as single as can be… Well, things could get difficult if I still smell as strongly as I do now.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ll try to stop doing that.” Rich scratched his head, “I should probably get on suppressants myself, now that I  _ know _ I’m an Omega.” He sat down on the bed trying to relax. “I’ll probably do that next week. It’ll probably make my nose less sensitive too, so that can’t be a bad thing, right?” Damn, he needed to stop blushing. Was this just an Omega thing? It sucked.

Michael shrugged, “Well, it can definitely help when it comes to that sort of thing. You know, if you want, I could set up an appointment for you about when I call to set mine? I, well, it’d probably be helpful to get a professional’s advice on where to go from here, since I’m not exactly an expert when it comes to living with an Omega.”

Rich smiled, “That’d be awesome. I haven’t really been to a doctor since… well since my mom died. I doubt my old doctor would still be there anyway.” He chuckled, “I don’t really know anything about being an Omega. I was kind of groomed to be an Alpha, so I have no idea what to expect.”

Michael nodded, “Okay then, I’ll, uh, I’ll just go do that.” Michael paused, not quite sure what to say, but feeling like there was something that needed to be stated. He shrugged it off, leaving the room and leaving Rich to his own devices.


	6. Dustin Kropp: Douchebag Extraordinaire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I feel bad writing Dustin as such a dick? A little. Am I gonna change it? Absolutely not.

The days following Michael’s “surprise” were some of the most peaceful Rich had ever experienced. He had an appointment with Michael’s doctor at the end of the week so he could be prescribed some scent suppressants. He’d been spending time with both of Michael’s mothers and could confidently say that he felt more at home with them than he ever had with his own family. He and Michael had been spending a lot of time together, too. They’d spend afternoons playing video games, watch a movie in the evenings, and they’d spend the night complaining about their school day and gorging themselves on junk food.

Everything was great. Better than he’d ever imagined his life would be. Until school ended the following Monday.

  
  
  
  


Since he’d been spending so much time with Michael, it was to be expected that Rich would’ve picked up a little of his smell, but he didn’t think that he would’ve picked up enough for others to sense. So he was kind of concerned when Dustin Kropp and his posse of douchebags cornered him in the hallway after last class. Rich had just walked out of class, heading for his locker when the Alpha stepped into his path. “Hey, Goranski, I have a question for you. How does it feel to be the sluttiest Omega in the school?”

Rich stepped back a bit, not liking how close Dustin was getting, “What are you talking about Dustin?”

The taller guy smirked, “I’m talking about you presenting and hopping on the first dick you could get your little Omega hands on.”

Rich rolled his eyes and tried to skirt around Dustin and his group. “You’re full of shit. I’m not fucking anyone.”

Dustin chuckled and grabbed Rich’s arm, pushing him up against the lockers, “Oh yeah? You reek of Mell; could you not find an Alpha or were you just that desperate?”

Rich glared, “Michael is…” he paused, realizing that it wasn’t his story to tell, “a Beta, but that doesn’t mean anything. I smell like him because his family took me in, end of story. Nothing is going on between us, so back off.”

“That’s right, poor little Omega probably got kicked out. What? Daddy couldn’t stand to see his little boy become an Omega slut for one of the biggest losers in the school? Poor thing, good thing Mell was there to take you in,” Dustin was progressively getting closer, making Rich more and more uncomfortable by the second.

“Shut the fuck up!” Rich yelled as he shoved against Dustin’s chest, causing the Alpha to stumble backward.

Dustin sneered, shaking his head, “Do you really think that was a good idea?” He cracked his knuckles and growled, using his Alpha Voice, “Don’t move while I break your face, you little bitch.” Dustin’s fist came flying forward, directly at Rich’s nose. The Omega couldn’t move, held still by the command the Alpha had given him.

Dustin’s fist halted just before it hit Rich and if anyone were more confused than Rich, it was Dustin. His brows furrowed as he turned, his sneer returning as he locked eyes with Michael. “Hey, asshole,” Michael grinned, dropping his hold on Dustin’s arm, “Back off my friend.”

Dustin glared at Michael, “Well, if it isn’t the little Beta boyfriend coming to save the day. You probably want to stay back so you don’t get blood on your precious hoodie.”

Michael laughed, “Oh, you’ve got another thing coming if you don’t get the hell out of here.” When Dustin gave no sign of leaving, Michael rolled his eyes, tossing his backpack to the side and pulling off his hoodie. “As much as I hate to admit it, you were right about one thing; I don’t want blood on my hoodie.”

Dustin chuckled, dropping his hold on Rich to face Michael completely, “Oh really? What’s a pathetic little Beta like you going to do against an Alpha like me?” He was getting up in Michael’s face now, clearly trying to use the aura of intimidation that came with being an Alpha to his advantage. “I bet your little boytoy over there has more of a backbone than you do, Mell,” he sneered.

“Well, you’re half-right,” Michael conceded, “Rich is a lot tougher than I am, but you’re also going to pay for hurting someone I care about.” He made eye contact with Rich over Dustin’s shoulder and smiled apologetically before turning his gaze back to Dustin. “Guess what? You’re not the toughest Alpha in school, jackass.” He smirked, allowing his concentration to drop and his Alpha pheromones to explode outward into the hallway, overwhelming everyone nearby.

Rich’s mind blanked as he was hit with the full force of Michael’s scent. His mind numbed as he slid down the locker he was leaning against. He shook his head after a moment, blinking drunkenly as he tried to wrap his mind around what he was seeing. 

Dustin had dropped to his knees, overpowered by Michael’s dominant aura. Michael had him by the front of his shirt, dragging him closer to his face as he snarled at him, “If I see you or any of your goons picking on him or any of my friends again, you’ll  _ wish _ that all I did was threaten you.” Michael’s eyes were cold, glaring daggers into Dustin as he spoke. Dustin nodded frantically and Michael dropped him, rolling his shoulders as he muffled his aura again, the heavy cloud lifting from the hallway as he turned to help Rich up, ignoring the sounds of the group of Alphas scurrying away. “Sorry you had to go through that.” Michael said quietly, figuring Rich would have a headache from all the Alpha scent he’d had to deal with, “Are you okay?”

It took a few minutes of blinking and holding onto Michael’s arms before Rich could speak. “I’m alright,” he said quietly, trying not to aggravate his headache any worse. “Can we just head home? I, uh, I’m not feeling too good.”

Michael nodded, leading the way back to the Cruiser and opening the door for Rich. “Do you need some Tylenol? I bet your head’s killing you right about now…” Michael spoke softly, trying not to make Rich’s head hurt any more.

Rich shook his head, “No, I’ll be fine. I think I just need some air. It should go away in a few minutes.” He pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes and sighed, trying to steady his voice as they walked.

Michael nodded, waiting until they were both in the car to put it in drive and head towards the house. He shot a worried glance at Rich as he noticed that he was still covering his eyes when they’d made it most of the way back to the house. He bit his lip and placed a comforting hand on Rich’s knee, “We’re almost home, then you can take something for your headache and take a nap, if you want?”

Rich sighed and spoke quietly, keeping his voice steady, “Good idea.” He swallowed hard, shaking slightly as he tried to breathe through the emotions racing through his mind. Once they were home, he dragged his hands away from his eyes, pulling the tears with them. He made his way inside staring at the ground, bee lining for the bathroom and locking the door behind himself. He took some shaky breaths and leaned on the counter. His eyes were red and full of tears. He quickly took a couple of pain meds and splashed his face with water to disguise his tears.

Michael watched in concern as Rich hurried into the house before following him. He could hear the bathroom door slam as he locked himself into the bathroom. When a few minutes passed and Rich still hadn’t left the bathroom, Michael bit his lip, knocking gently on the door, “Rich?” He asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Rich quickly dried his face, “Yeah, I'm fine.” He grit his teeth and opened the door, quickly ducking around Michael to hide himself in his bedroom. “Just… go do your homework or something.”

Michael shook his head, following Rich to his room. “No; clearly you’re not okay. You were crying when you got out of the car.”

Rich swallowed hard, locking his bedroom door. “It's fine. It's not your problem.” He flopped down on his bed, burying himself in the blankets.

Michael sighed, pressing his back against Rich’s door and sliding down to sit against it. “Rich, I’m going to be here for you whether you want me to or not. It’s what friends do.”

Rich wiped his eyes, trying to fight the tears back. “I don't need your help. I'm fine.” He clung to his pillow and let his tears soak into it.

Michael’s brows furrowed, “You sound like you’re trying to convince yourself more than you’re trying to convince me.” He huffed, “I hope you realize I’m going to sit here until you open the door.”

“Hope you're comfortable because you're going to be there for a while.” He pulled the blanket over his head and shoved his face back into his pillow to muffle his whines, hating that he couldn't stop the sound.

Michael bit his lip at the sound of Rich’s muffled crying. “Give me just a second.” He got up and made his way to the basement, dragging his beanbag and DS back to Rich’s door and resuming his post. “I can be here all night if I have to.”


	7. Hoodies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just some good ol' hurt/comfort for the soul.

Rich wasn't sure how long he laid there, tears soaking his pillow, but by the time he emerged from the warm, fuzzy pile, it was dark outside. His eyes were still puffy and the tears were slower but still falling. His head was throbbing, meds doing nothing to help the pain. Out of curiosity, Rich climbed off the bed, blanket wrapped tightly around him. He unlocked the door and cracked it open, checking to see if Michael was still there.

Michael glanced up from his DS as the door creaked open, “You going to let me in now or should I start another playthrough?” He asked, nodding towards his game where the Legend of Zelda theme was playing.

Rich stared for a few seconds before closing the door and locking it again. “Go away.” He flopped back down on his bed and returned to hiding himself in under the mountain of blankets and pillows. He plugged in his earbuds, turning on music so he didn't have to listen if Michael tried to get him to open the door again.

Michael rolled his eyes as the lock clicked back into place. “So you’re not letting me in then?” When Rich didn’t reply, Michael sighed, “Fine.” He raised his voice, making sure he could be heard, “You asked for this, Rich!” He got up from his beanbag, abandoning his DS which was still playing the opening theme before quietly making his way out of the house and around to the tree under Rich’s window. He checked that Rich wasn’t beside the window and started climbing.

After a couple of songs, Rich pulled his headphones out to check if Michael was still sitting in the hall. Upon hearing the music, he rolled his eyes and put the headphones back in, content with believing Michael was still in the hallway. He hunkered down further into the blankets, completely buried in the mound of blankets and pillows.

Michael finally made it to the branch outside his old bedroom and crept to the end of it, slowly edging the window open. He glanced warily at the lump of blankets on Rich’s bed before slowly slipping into the room. He knocked gently on the window frame, trying to avoid giving Rich a heart attack. When he got no response, Michael rolled his eyes, “Fine. Sneak attack it is,” he muttered, approaching the bed before throwing himself down on top of the unsuspecting Omega.

Rich was starting to doze off, relaxing finally until he felt a heavy weight land on top of him. Rich screamed and flailed, trying to turn himself over and shove the person off.

Michael panicked, scrambling to not fall off the bed as Rich squirmed to get away, “Whoa! Hey, hey, Rich, it’s me!” He moved quickly to pin Rich under the covers, trying to keep him from actually hurting Michael before he realized who he was. “It’s okay, buddy, its okay.”

Rich continued screaming, not able to recognize Michael's voice off the bat. As his arms were pinned to his sides, he screamed, “Get off me, asshole!” He tried to fight, this time hearing Michael's voice. “What the fuck, you dick? Get the hell off of me!” He thrashed violently, trying to escape his friend's hold.

Michael continued to keep Rich pinned, hoping he’d start to calm down soon, “Hey, it’s okay; everything’s fine. I didn’t mean to scare you; I tried to get your attention but you didn’t respond, so I assumed you were just ignoring me.” As he spoke, a tiny bit of his Alpha control slipped into his words without him realizing it. “I’m sorry for scaring you, but you need to settle down, okay?”

Rich fought and growled at Michael, angry at his friend. “Then get off of me!” He stopped thrashing for a moment, giving Michael a chance to move. He huffed and pushed the blankets off his face, eyes locking onto Michael's face in the dark.

Michael nodded, shifting carefully off of Rich to sit beside him. He was quiet for a moment, avoiding Rich’s gaze, “I really am sorry for scaring you. I was just worried and you weren’t going to tell me anything.”

Rich sighed and pulled the pillow into his lap. “I'm still not telling you. It's not your problem.” He swallowed and forced his emotions down.

Michael bit his lip, “You don’t have to tell me anything if you don't want to, just-” He sighed, looking up at Rich sadly, “Just let me be here for you? I care about you, Rich, and I don’t like seeing you hurting.”

Rich fiddled with his earbuds, trying to distract himself. “There's nothing you can do. You can't fix me, and you can't change what happened. You don't need to try and protect me either.”

“I don’t need to fix you,” Michael said, shaking his head, “And I certainly don’t need to protect you; hell, you’ve been holding your own for as long as I’ve known you. I just- I just want you to trust me enough to let me be here for you. ” He looked away, brows furrowing, “We’re friends, aren’t we?” When Rich nodded, Michael continued speaking, “So why do you always keep me at such a distance?”

Rich stared down at his hands, refusing to look up at Michael. "I can't fight anyone off except for maybe a weak Beta anymore. I don't think I've gone a single day since I presented without crying. Everything that I was supposed to be is now gone. I am broken, and I can't be fixed. I push you away because I don't want to mess it all up. I don't know what I'm doing, but I'm in everyone's way and just causing trouble," he spewed, gasping when he'd finished. The tears fell freely down his cheeks in the dark. He curled into his knees, pressing his face into the pillow in his lap, muffling his sobs with it.

Michael exhaled sharply, turning to face the Omega, “Rich, you’re not broken. It’s just your body trying to figure out what to do with all the new hormones; that’s why you’re emotional. God, you should’ve seen Jeremy when he first presented; I literally bought him french fries and he was sobbing for an hour about him not deserving me.” Michael chuckled, wrapping his arm around Rich and pulling him into a hug, “There’s not a single thing about you that needs fixed, you’re perfect the way you are. And hey, if you’re causing trouble, it’s because that’s your middle name, right?” He nudged Rich teasingly, “Or is that just what you tell me when you want me to go on midnight adventures with you?”

Rich didn’t move, grumbling into the pillow, “I feel like shit 24/7. I hate this. I’m just getting in you and your moms’ way.” He hiccuped into the pillow, which just seemed to make him cry more. He picked his head up and wiped his eyes. He gripped his hair, holding his breath in an attempt to stop the hiccupping.

Michael pulled away from Rich for a moment and looked at him thoughtfully. He got up, and pulled off his hoodie, setting it beside the Omega. “Here, wear this for a minute; it’ll be like I’m still hugging you until I get back.” He paused before slipping out the door, “Do me a favor and don’t lock me out this time? I have more than one way to sneak into what used to be my room.” He grinned before disappearing into the hallway, the thumps of him running down the stairs echoing up the hall.

Rich didn’t move, watching as Michael left before debating putting on the hoodie. With a sigh, he put the pillow down and shrugged Michael’s hoodie on, turtling into it, pulling it up over his nose. He laid back down and buried himself in blankets again. He took deep breaths, breathing in Michael’s scent from the hoodie, feeling a bit better already.

Michael hurried back into the room a few minutes later carrying a bundle of green fabric. He smiled slightly at the sight of Rich in his hoodie before taking a seat next to the brunet, “You know, Jeremy got that hoodie for me when I got diagnosed with anxiety.” He spread the bundle of fabric out across his lap, revealing it to be a hoodie that looked kind of like his, but in a light emerald green color. “He got me a new patch every time I made it through an attack.” He fumbled around in his pocket, withdrawing a spool of thread, a needle, and a small patch, but he used the position of his hand to block Rich from actually seeing what the patch said. He made quick work of threading the needle and started stitching the patch onto the sweatshirt, hiding it just inside the pocket, so it wouldn’t be visible. “When I presented, the Alpha hormones helped chase off some of my anxiety, but I still get pretty bad sometimes. The hoodie kind of became like a security blanket.” He tied off the thread, using his teeth to break it off and shaking out the hoodie, quickly checking the position of the patch before setting it next to Rich, “Maybe this one can be like that for you.”

Rich watched Michael work, listening as he spoke. At first it was just mild curiosity, but he quickly was fighting the urge to get up and see what he was doing. When he set the hoodie down, Rich looked back and forth between Michael and the hoodie for a moment before an arm snuck out from under the blanket. He dragged it under the blanket and pulled it up over his head as he wiggled underneath. When his head emerged, Rich was somehow wearing the green hoodie underneath Michael’s red hoodie.

Michael smiled down at Rich, “Now you can have something with you that reminds you that I think you’re perfect.” He poked at Rich’s stomach, in the general area where he’d stitched on the small circular patch that read ‘you’re enough.’ He glanced away, “Even if you can’t see it.”

Rich curled in as Michael poked his belly, giving an indignant whine. He tugged away the blanket and pulled up the bottom of Michael’s jacket to look at the patch. He touched it gently, studying it in the low light coming from the hallway. His fingers traced every detail of the patch, a small smile gracing his lips. After a few minutes, he looked up at Michael, tears falling from his eyes again, “Thank you.” He shifted over, leaning into Michael, burying his face in the Alpha’s shoulder.

Michael smiled softly, pleased that he’d been able to help Rich, even if it was only a little, “You don’t need to thank me,” he hummed, slipping his arm around the Omega’s shoulder and hugging him close while he used his free hand to wipe away the tears that he could reach. “I’d do anything if it’d get you to smile again.”

Rich held tightly to Michael for a minute before taking a deep breath and laying his head on the Alpha’s shoulder. He couldn’t help the little smile that was tugging at his lip. “That’s pretty gay,” he teased. The Omega wasn’t quite ready to let go yet, enjoying being so close to the Alpha for once, his scent surrounding the Omega and relaxing him.

Michael laughed, relaxing against Rich, “I’m pretty gay.”

Rich chuckled, “That’s true.” He smiled and closed his eyes, not sure how long he could get away with letting the Alpha hold him, but he was going to milk it for as long as he could. Before he knew it, Rich had dozed off on Michael’s shoulder, his breath evening out.

Michael smiled softly as he noticed Rich’s breathing slow. “All those emotions must’ve worn you out, huh?” He asked quietly, realizing that he wasn’t going anywhere until Rich woke up. He shifted subtly, tugging a blanket further over Rich and falling asleep himself.


	8. Kiss the Cook

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate it! I decided to add two chapters today to celebrate, so I hope you enjoyed Chapter 7 and enjoy 8!  
-UndercoverAvenger

Rich buried his face in his pillow as he started to wake up. He didn’t want to be awake yet. Then, he heard his pillow breathe, and realized it was far too solid to be his pillow. Rich tipped his head up, seeing Michael’s face a couple inches from his. The Omega’s heart started to pound in his chest. He carefully looked over his shoulder at the clock. He and Michael had cuddled all night. How had this happened? Rich debated getting up. He wasn’t dating Michael, and he didn’t want to upset Michael’s moms if they found the two. Carefully, Rich tried to pull himself from Michael’s arms without waking the Alpha.

Michael sighed in his sleep, arms tightening around Rich as he tried to wiggle away. He huffed, pressing his face against Rich’s shoulder, his breathing not faltering as he wrapped himself around the Omega.

Rich squeaked when Michael pulled him closer. He froze, unsure of what to do. While he wanted to stay and snuggle with the Alpha, he wasn’t sure if Michael knew what he was doing or who he was cuddling. He stared at the wall as he floundered for several minutes before resigning to stay still for a bit. It couldn’t hurt to stay wrapped in the Alpha’s warmth a little longer. He snuggled as close as he could to Michael, closing his eyes with a soft sigh. Rich felt calm and protected for once in his life, content to let someone take care of him for a moment.

Michael shifted slightly as the door opened, hiding his face against the pillow as his mothers entered the room. “Boys, you need to wake up; you’ve got school.”

Michael lifted his head groggily, he made eye contact with each of them before shaking his head, “Rich had a bad day yesterday. He needs to not be there and I need to be here with him.”

His moms glanced at each other, seemingly communicating through eye contact before turning back to their son, “Fine.” His mom said, making her way over to him and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “But you two have to go back tomorrow, okay?”

He nodded, “Thanks mom.”

She nodded, tucking a strand of her dark hair behind her ear as she made her way back to her wife. Michael’s mother smiled, “Don’t forget that we’ll be gone next week, okay?”

Michael paused, trying to remember, “Oh yeah, you’ve got that conference in Virginia, right?” She nodded and they made their way out of the room, closing the door and leaving the boys to sleep. Michael rolled back over, curling up against Rich and falling back asleep.

Rich had tensed up but kept his eyes closed as Michael’s moms had come in. He was confused how they were being so nonchalant about he and Michael’s current situation, but he wouldn’t complain. He blinked up at the Alpha boy as he defended Rich. How had that worked? Had it been his dad, Rich would have been forced to go to school unless he physically couldn’t stand, and then… He blinked as Michael cuddling up to him pulled him from the thoughts of his dad. He was going to say something before he noticed Michael was asleep already. The Omega rolled his eyes before snuggling into the Alpha, resting his head against his chest before slowly drifting back to sleep.

  
  
  


Michael woke up again a few hours later, blinking groggily with Rich clinging to him, still fast asleep. He smiled, running a hand through Rich’s hair fondly before slowly starting to extract himself from Rich’s octopus-like hold and slipping out of the room. He stumbled his way into the kitchen and started collecting the ingredients needed to make breakfast.

Rich woke up to the smell of food, a sure-fire way to get a Goranski’s attention. He noticed Michael was gone and squirmed his way out of the blanket before making his way downstairs, still groggy after going back to sleep for so long. He still had both his and Michael’s hoodies on, refusing to take them off until he was forced to. He wandered into the kitchen, still teetering on his feet from sleep. “Whatcha makin’?” he mumbled, rubbing his eye.

Michael glanced over his shoulder at Rich and smiled, “Pancakes and bacon.” He turned back to the stove and flipped the pancake he’d been making, flipping it easily in the pan. “You can sit down if you want? I’ll bring you a plate in just a second.” Michael slid the pancake onto the stack beside him and set aside the pan, carrying the plate of pancakes over to Rich. As he turned, his ridiculous apron was revealed. Michael was wearing a ‘Kiss the Cook’ apron. He followed Rich’s incredulous gaze and chuckled awkwardly, “Oh, uh, I’m really messy when I cook, so I have to wear an apron, but I couldn’t find any of the other ones. I got this one for mom as a joke, but she makes me wears it all the time.”

Rich chuckled at Michael’s rambling. “Yep, I’m sure that’s the excuse.” He took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of the food and sighing. He quickly soaked his pancakes in syrup and started on them. “I’m shocked, gamer nerd can cook. Color me impressed,” he said with a smirk.

Michael chuckled, “Well, when you get raised by my mothers, you pick up on cooking pretty quickly.” He turned to go grab the plate of bacon before making his way back to the counter and dishing his own plate of food.

“I think I could burn water, but you put a grill in front of me and I can pretty much grill anything perfectly.” He picked up a piece of bacon and crumbling it on top of his pancakes. “Thank you for breakfast.” He immediately turned his focus back to the sugary, near soggy pile in front of him.

“Thanks for being my teddy bear last night,” Michael grinned, “Sorry; I’m kind of clingy when I’m asleep,” he continued eating.

Rich smiled, feeling his cheeks heat up. He finished eating and got up to put his plate in the sink. He turned back to lean on the counter across from Michael. “I didn’t mind. If I had I probably would have pushed you off. Also… thanks for taking care of me yesterday… and protecting me… and the hoodie. I’m just really used to having to do things for myself and getting in trouble for not being able to. It was… kind of nice not having to worry about all of that for once.” He gave Michael a small smile before looking down at the counter and fidgeting with his fingers.

Michael grinned softly, “That’s what I’m here for, dude. Friends are there so you don’t have to be strong all the time; don’t be afraid to lean on me if you need to.” He turned his attention back to his food, where he’d just started on another pancake.

Rich nodded, “Thanks.” He pursed his lips before walking around and hugging Michael from behind. “Also, I should probably do as I’m told.” He quickly pecked Michael’s cheek before sprinting up the stairs. “Hopping in the shower!” he hollered as he ran into his room to grab some clean clothes and making a beeline for the bathroom.

Michael’s brows furrowed in confusion before he glanced down at the apron he’d forgotten to take off as he realized what Rich had meant. He chuckled, biting into another piece of bacon and dutifully ignoring the blush on his cheeks.

Rich locked the door behind him before starting the water. Once he was in, realization struck. “I… I just kissed Michael’s cheek… Oh my god… I’m an idiot. What was I thinking? Why would I do that? He’s probably gonna get mad. I fucked up! I royally fucked it up!”


	9. Level Nine

A few days later, Michael invited Jeremy over for their weekly video game night. Everything was normal; they’d settled into their designated bean-bags with a buffet of junk food and obscure soda spread out before them. Then they beat Level Nine of AoTD. Michael dropped his controller as he stared at the victory screen in shock, “We- we did it.” He breathed, the excitement not hitting him until a moment later. “We did it!” He cheered, flinging himself at Jeremy for a hug. 

Jeremy wrapped his arms around Michael in shared excitement, “Holy shit; I can’t believe we finally did it!” Neither of the boys noticed the basement door creak open.

Rich had decided to go see how things were going with his friends, having left them to have their own time to hang out. When the door opened, Rich wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. All he could see in the dim room was the shadowy figures of the two friends holding each other. He waited a few seconds in the silence before turning and leaving. He should have known they were more than what they seemed. He’d been trying to subtly flirt with Michael for days, but the Alpha wasn’t really responding, maybe this was why, he had already picked Jeremy. He headed up to his room, slamming the door.

Michael pulled away from Jeremy as he heard the door slam shut, “What was-” He sighed, “Rich.” He stood up, shooting Jeremy a conflicted grin, “I’ll go talk to him. Stay here and I’ll be back in a bit?” Jeremy nodded, pulling out his phone as Michael made his way upstairs and to Rich’s room.

He knocked gently, “Rich? Is everything okay?”

Rich huffed as he heard Michael at the door. “Everything’s fine,” he replied, clearly upset. He was laying on his back, staring up at the ceiling.

Michael huffed, “No it’s not. I know that voice; you’re overthinking again.” He paused, “Can I come in?”

Rich looked down at his hoodie and sat up, tugging it over his head and chucking it across the room somewhere. “Well, you’ll either come in through the door or crawl through my window anyway, so I guess so.” He rolled over so his back was to the door. 

Michael sighed softly, stepping into the room and looking at Rich in concern, “What’s wrong?”

Rich stared at the wall, “Don’t worry about it. Just go back to your game.”

Michael shook his head, “Nope, doesn’t work like that. I’m going to worry until you tell me what’s bothering you.” He made his way further into the room, sitting down next to Rich’s bed.

Rich rolled his eyes, “Well, stop. Go worry about  _ Jeremy _ . He needs your attention more than me.”

“What are you talking about?” Michael asked, confused about how bitter Rich’s response sounded.

Rich scoffed, “Gonna act dumb now? I saw you guys down there. You don’t have to act like nothing is going on between you two.”

Michael’s brows furrowed, “Between-” Michael sighed as he realized what Rich meant, “There’s nothing going on between me and Jeremy. We were just excited since we beat Level Nine.”

“Uh huh, that’s why you were cuddling instead of screaming like monkeys,” He sighed, curling up tighter.

Michael laughed, “It’s called a victory hug, and we weren’t screaming ‘cause we were still in shock. Give us about an hour to process and we’ll start freaking out.” He sobered, looking at Rich seriously, “Still doesn’t explain why you’re so upset.”

Rich swallowed hard, “I’m not going to tell you that. You can try and figure it out for yourself, but I’m not going to tell you.” He could feel his face warming up, spreading to his ears.

Michael shifted so he was sitting right in front of Rich and looked up at him seriously, “You may want to reconsider before I pull out my secret weapon.”

Rich glared at Michael, “What are you talking about?”

Michael grinned, scooting closer, “If you don’t tell me I’ll have to break out the Puppy Eyes TM  .”

Rich raised an eyebrow, “You think that’s really going to work on me?”

Michael raised an eyebrow, “The fact that you think it wouldn’t is insulting.” He scooted closer, resting his chin on the edge of the bed beside Rich.

Rich shook his head, “Not going to work. I should be the one trying to use puppy eyes on you, not the other way around.”

Michael scoffed, resting his head on his crossed arms and plucking off his glasses. He looked up at Rich through his lashes, wide brown eyes staring up at him pleadingly. “I just wanna know what’s wrong,” he whined.

Rich’s face managed to go darker red, “Taking off your glasses isn’t fair. You have gorgeous eyes.” The Omega’s eyes went wide and his blush spread down his neck. He slapped his hands over his face with a small whimper.

Michael sat back in surprise, his pleading expression fading, “Really? Thanks! Yours are really pretty too,” he grinned.

Rich whined, unable to form any coherent words. He breathed for a moment, trying to calm down. “Why are you so perfect?”

Michael chuckled, “I’m a lot of things, but perfect definitely isn’t one of them.”

“Yes, you are.” Rich pulled the collar of his shirt up, hiding his head inside of it. He was embarrassed by the turn the conversation had taken, but he didn’t want it to stop at the same time.

Michael smiled, amused by Rich’s sudden bashfulness, “Not really; I’m dramatic and nerdy and slushie-obsessed. But perfect? Nah, that’s not really my style.”

“Close enough,” he mumbled, curling up in a tight ball.

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” Michael rolled his eyes, putting his glasses back on, “Now, can we admit that my puppy eyes were super effective and get to the part where you tell me what’s really bothering you?”

Rich pulled his head back through the neck of his shirt. “Never. You cheated. You never said you were going to take off your glasses.”

Michael huffed, “It’s not cheating; it’s using my resources. Besides, if anything they should be considered a handicap; I’m fucking blind without them.”

Rich sat up and shook his head, “No, it’s cheating. You don’t have see more than a fuzzy shape to give someone puppy eyes.”

“It helps if you make eye contact with someone though!” Michael argued, “This doesn’t have nearly the same effect!” Michael replicated his puppy eyes from earlier, but left his glasses on this time.

“Exactly, taking your glasses off gives you an unfair advantage,” Rich crossed his arms and pouted.

Michael rolled his eyes, “It’s literally how I was born; if anything the glasses are an advantage since I’m actually able to  _ see _ when I have them.” He shook his head, tugging them off again and resuming his pout, “Tell me your secrets.”

Rich closed his eyes and turned his face away. “Nope! Not telling you! You’ll have to pry my secrets from my cold, dead hands.”

Michael huffed, leaning closer and resting his chin against Rich’s knee. “You’ll have to look at me eventually.”

Rich shook his head, “Nope. Not gonna look.”

Michael smirked slightly, grabbing one of Rich’s hands and resting his cheek against it, still looking up at Rich entreatingly, “Please?”

“Nope, you’re a cheater.” Rich couldn’t help the little smile tugging at his lip, trying his hardest not to give Michael anymore ammo than he already had.

Michael whined sadly, doing his best to tug at Rich’s heart so he’d look at him, “But I just want to help,” he whimpered.

Rich groaned, “Now that’s really not fair.” He quickly pushed Michael away before jumping off his bed and running down the stairs laughing.

Michael rolled his eyes, inwardly pleased that he’d been able to take Rich’s mind off of whatever had been bothering him. He chuckled as he followed Rich, making his way back into the basement. “That wasn’t nice, Rich,” he teased.

Rich was already sitting comfortably in Michael’s beanbag, “Whoever said I played nice was lying to you.” He smirked, waiting to see what Michael would do about his seat being stolen.

Michael eyed Rich for a moment, “You aren’t going to move, are you?”

Rich shook his head, “Nah, I think I’m pretty comfortable right where I am. If you want me to move, you’ll have to move me yourself.”

Michael rolled his eyes, making his way down the rest of the stairs and grabbing his controller. He came to a stop just in front of Rich, “Last chance. Move or suffer.”

Rich stretched and groaned, “Nope. I’m staying right here.”

“Fine, suit yourself.” Michael retorted, turning around and sitting on Rich’s lap. “You’re in my seat; you become my seat.” He pressed start on Level Ten and he and Jeremy got to work fighting zombies.

“Okay fine, I’m okay with this.” He watched them play for a while, leaning to the side so he could see around the Alpha in his lap. He hadn’t even noticed his own hand resting on Michael’s thigh, too engrossed with the game and pointing things out to them as they played.

Michael chuckled whenever Rich shifted, constantly asking if he was ready to move, before getting too invested in the level to pay any attention to him. He shot another zombie before sneaking a glance at Jeremy’s character, “Jer, on your left!” he called, hurrying to take out the zombies that’d approached him while he was looking away.

Rich watched carefully as their health meters were dropping. He squeezed Michael’s hip and pointed at the screen, “Looklooklook! There’s health behind the stairs!”

Michael jolted, following his instructions, “Holy shit, yes!” Their health bars were filled most of the way again and they were able to polish off the rest of the zombies, completing Level Ten. “Holy fuck.” Michael breathed, a massive grin creeping across his face as the victory screen flashed for the second time that day.

Rich reached over and gave Jeremy a high five, squirming in the beanbag. He threw his hands up in the air, head tipping back as he hollered in excitement.

Michael laughed, twisting to throw his arms around Rich, “Dude, you saved our asses by spotting those heath kits!”

Rich jumped, a little surprised by the sudden affection. “Uh, you probably would have noticed it the next go. No big deal.”

Michael laughed, glancing over at Jeremy before turning his gaze back to Rich, “Doubt it; both of us are more ‘Look at the thing that’s attacking you’ gamers. We probably would’ve ended up rage-quitting.” 

Jeremy nodded, “He may be the one with glasses, but I’m pretty blind when it comes to things like that.”

Rich rolled his eyes, “You would have noticed it eventually. I’m just spectating.”

Michael huffed, unwinding his arms from Rich and standing up, stretching. “Well, you’re a ton of help for ‘just spectating.’” He replied, groaning as he stretched a particularly stiff muscle.

Rich shrugged, “Maybe a little. Probably saved you a couple of runs.” He stretched out on the beanbag, eyes closing as his back arched with a moan.

Michael rolled his eyes, “More than a couple, I’m sure.” He turned to Jeremy, “What time did your dad want you home?”

Jeremy glanced at his phone before groaning, “About twenty minutes ago?”

Michael facepalmed, “Shit. Okay, let’s go.” He looked at Rich, “I’ll be back in a little while okay? I just need to run Jer home and then we can have a movie night?” Michael waited until Rich nodded before following Jeremy up the stairs and out of the house.

Rich nodded and smiled, “I’ll get things ready.”


	10. Heat Stroke

Rich waited until Michael and Jeremy were gone before pushing the beanbags aside and dragging the massive beanbag sofa over. He wandered upstairs to grab some extra blankets and pillows, throwing them onto the giant beanbag. Rich had made his way to the kitchen, searching for popcorn when he heard the door open. “You back?”

  


“Nope; I’m a murderer,” Michael joked as he made his way into the kitchen, “Ooh, are you going to make popcorn?”

  


“If you haven’t eaten it all,” he teased, climbing onto the counter to check the top shelf.

  


Michael shrugged, “I can neither confirm nor deny your accusation.” He really couldn’t deny his popcorn addiction. “So, what do you want to watch?”

  


Rich shrugged, “Doesn’t matter. Whatever you want to watch.” He smirked, “have you been stashing the popcorn up here?” He reached to the back of the shelf and pulled out a pile of popcorn bags.

  


“Maybe?” Michael laughed, “I might think it’s kind of hilarious to watch you try to climb up there to try and find it.”

  


Rich glared, “Don’t make me start hiding your popcorn where you’ll never find it.”

  


Michael glared at Rich, “Don’t you dare threaten my popcorn. And to think I was going to let you choose the movie.”

  


Rich chuckled, “I already told you I didn’t care what we watched.” He leaned against the cabinets and crossed his arms, looking down at Michael for once.

  


Michael sighed, “I was going to put on Friday the Thirteenth, you bitch. Then you started threatening my popcorn and now I don’t think you deserve to see your precious Jason.” He threw the first bag into the microwave.

  


“Stop trying to hide things on the top shelf from me and I won’t threaten your popcorn.” He started glaring again, “And leave Jason out of this. He has done nothing to you.”

  


Michael rolled his eyes, “I’m not hiding anything except from my mother; she wants us to stop eating that sort of thing. Says it’s bad for us.” He pulled the first bag out of the microwave and dumping it into a large bowl.

  


Rich rolled his eyes back at him, “I only eat it when we do movie nights. You on the other hand, you eat it whenever you get the munchies.” He smirked and leaned on the refrigerator.

  


“She will not take my artificially buttered munchie-solver away from me.” Michael joked, pulling the second bag out of the microwave and dumping it in the bowl.

  


Rich laughed, “Oh, I know she won’t get it away from you. You’d go adventuring for it while you were tripping.” He jumped off the counter, landing on the floor with a loud ‘thump’ to see if he could spook Michael while he was distracted.

  


Michael shrugged, picking up the bowl and turning to make his way to the basement, “I totally would.”

  


Rich pouted when Michael didn’t jump. He followed Michael into his ‘lair’, flopping onto the giant beanbag. He squirmed, trying to adjust the pillows and blankets before curling into his spot.

  


Michael chuckled handing Rich the bowl and moving to set up the movie. He grabbed the remote before turning and belly-flopping onto the beanbag next to Rich. “You’re lucky I still love you, you bitch.” Michael said affectionately as the opening credits to Friday the Thirteenth rolled.

  


Rich smiled as Michael laid down next to him, feeling himself rise as the foam beads were displaced. His face started to heat up at Michael’s words. He hunkered down further. He mumbled something unintelligibly, pulling the blanket up to hide most of his face.

  


Michael chuckled as the first person was killed, reaching over to snag a handful of popcorn, oblivious to Rich’s flustered state.

  


It took a couple minutes before Rich relaxed, letting the blanket fall from his face. Slowly, he started to slide toward Michael on the beanbag. He wasn’t paying much attention to the movie, more distracted by the contact between his arm and where Michael’s jacket had ridden up on his side.

  


After shifting uncomfortably for a few minutes Michael sighed, sitting up and stripping out of his hoodie before tossing it to the side. He flopped back down against the pillow, feeling much more comfortable now that he wasn’t overheating.

  


Rich watched as Michael stood up, eyes fixed on the skin that was exposed as Michael removed his hoodie, shirt riding up with it. Even when Michael laid back down, Rich’s eyes followed, fixated on where his skin had been showing. He was completely unaware of his surroundings or how long he had been staring, not even aware he was staring to begin with.

  


Michael glanced over a while later to make a comment about the movie but paused as he noticed Rich’s gaze fixed on him. His brows furrowed, “What’re you looking at? Does my shirt have a stain on it or something?” He lifted the edge of his shirt, pulling it up so he could look at it easier.

  


“N-No, nothing, I was just staring off into space,” he said, face flushing in the low light. He quickly looked back at the screen, hoping Michael didn’t notice how much he was blushing.

  


“Oh,” Michael replied, fixing his shirt again, “Okay then.” He shrugged turning back to the movie.

  


Rich took a deep breath, calming when Michael didn’t mention anything. He kicked the blanket off, finally starting to get warm.

  


Michael looked over at him as he moved, “You okay? Your face is pretty red…”   
  


_ Oh, shit, _ he thought, eyes not leaving the screen. “Yeah, I’m good. Just… got too warm I think?”

  


Michael’s brows furrowed and he shifted closer, leaning over Rich, “You sure? You’re really red to just be a little warm… Do you want me to go get something cold?”

  


Rich nodded, clearing his throat to keep his voice steady, “Uh, yeah, I-I’m sure.” He prayed his face wasn’t getting more warm with how close Michael was. “I’ll, um, I’ll let you know if I change my mind, b-but I should be fine.”

  


“If you say so,” Michael shrugged, leaning back and turning his attention back to the movie. “It’s probably a good thing you aren’t wearing your hoodie right now; you’d be getting heat stroke or something.”

  


“You’re probably right,” Rich chuckled, though he kind of wished he had it anyway. He’d hardly gone anywhere without it since Michael had given it to him, and this was by far the longest he’d been without it.

  


Michael rolled his eyes, crossing his arms, “I’m always right; I thought you’d have figured that out by now,” he joked.

  


Rich scoffed, “I’ve figured out that you have a big ego. Is that what I was supposed to learn?”

  


“Oh, like you’re much better,” Michael teased, rolling his eyes. “I seem to recall you calling me a bitch for moving the remote a couple of days ago.”

  


“That’s because you put it on the top shelf on the bookcase, and you know I can’t climb that.” He glared at Michael and crossed his arms, pouting at the screen.

  


Michael hummed, “Okay, that was kind of dickish of me.” He scooted closer, wrapping his arms around Rich and resting his head on his shoulder as he looked up at him with his puppy eyes, “I’m sorry?”

  


Rich rolled his eyes, “Yeah, it was.” He was a bit surprised when Michael wrapped him in his arms. His heart thumped louder and faster in his chest. “It’s fine, just no more top shelves,” he chuckled awkwardly.

  


Michael chuckled, “Fine, fine; no more high shelves.” He nuzzled closer, tugging a blanket up over the two of them, “You’re warm.”

  


“Good.” Rich could practically feel his heart trying to pound its way out of his chest. “I thought we had already established that I was warm.”

  


Michael tugged him closer, letting one of his arms drift down to curl around Rich’s waist, “It’s not a bad thing; you’re really nice to cuddle.”

  


Rich’s face went red again.  _ Dear god, I will never stop blushing around him. _ He wrapped his arms around Michael as well and smiled, “Glad I’m a good teddy bear.”

  


“I thought we settled that when I literally spider-monkeyed you all night?” Michael laughed, pulling away slightly to slump back against the beanbag.

  


“We did, I’m just glad that the verdict still stands.” He pouted as Michael pulled a bit away.

  


Michael rolled his eyes, “Hey, just ‘cause I laid down, doesn’t mean you can get out of cuddling me, Richard,” he held out his arms pleadingly. “Love me?”

  


Rich pursed his lips, face getting redder.  _ I already do. _ He rolled over and curled up with Michael, laying his head on the taller guy’s chest. “Happy now?”

  


Michael nodded, snaking his arms around Rich’s waist, “Very.” He turned his attention back to the screen.

  


Rich’s heart was pounding hard and his face burned, but he relaxed, content in Michael’s arms. Before long, Rich had dozed off, the sound of Michael’s heartbeat lulling him to sleep.

  


Michael smiled softly as he noticed the brunet’s breathing slow, tugging a blanket up over their laps. “Goodnight Rich,” He hummed, pressing a soft kiss to Rich’s temple before turning back to the movie.


	11. Kiss the Cook, Part Two

Rich woke up fairly early, looking up to see Michael holding him and smiling. His heart thumped hard and he snuggled into Michael for a bit longer, not quite ready to start moving. After a short while, he carefully removed himself from Michael’s arms, giving him a pillow to cling to instead. He made his way up to the kitchen, wanting to return the favor of breakfast. He pulled out some peppers, onions, ham, and cheese, prepping it all before getting out some sausage. Before long, he was dishing up plates for Michael’s moms before working on his and Michael’s food.

Michael woke up a while later, groggy and kind of saddened that he hadn’t woken up with Rich in his arms. He sighed, extricating himself from the blankets, rolling off of the beanbag and stumbling up the stairs and into the kitchen. He grinned when he saw Rich cooking, “Morning,” He greeted, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

Rich smiled when he heard Michael coming up the stairs. He looked down and shook his head. After they’d come into the kitchen, Michael’s moms had insisted he wear the apron Michael had been wearing earlier that week. “Good morning sleepyhead.” He leaned against the counter, leaving the omelette and sausages to cook while he smiled at Michael’s sleep-mussed hair. “How’d you sleep?”

Michael shrugged, “Would’ve been better if you stayed and cuddled me.” Michael grinned sleepily, sitting down at the counter and watching Rich cook. He chuckled as he noticed the apron, “Making a fashion statement all of a sudden?” he teased, remembering the way Rich had poked fun at him about the apron the other day.

Rich chuckled, “I did for a bit, but I figured you’d want food. Your moms were up and moving anyway, so I figured I’d make breakfast.” He rolled his eyes, “You can blame your mother. She forced it on me when she saw me throw the first piece of sausage in the pan. Grease stains or something like that.” He turned back to the stove, folding the omelette over and turning the sausage.

Michael laughed, “Sounds like her, alright.” He watched Rich cook for a minute longer, grinning, “It looks good on you.”

Rich blushed and looked over his shoulder, “Oh shut up.” He went back to working on the food, using it as a distraction. After another moment, he slid the omelette out of the pan and onto a plate, setting a couple pieces of sausage beside it. “Not nearly as good as pancakes, but it’s one of the few things I can actually cook.” He set the plate in front of Michael and smiled before turning to make his own.

Michael shrugged, cutting into the omelette. “I mean, I can’t make them; I tried once and gave up when the smoke detectors went off.” He took a bite, eyes widening, “Rich, this is really good!”

Rich smirked, “Well, at least I have one thing I can make well. Glad you approve, you’re kind of stuck with me.” He chuckled, finishing his own omelette and plating it before going to sit beside Michael.

“So, any plans today?” Michael asked curiously as he continued eating.

Rich rolled his eyes, “What plans? I literally have no life aside from school and harassing you and Jeremy.” He took a big bite and raised an eyebrow at Michael.

Michael shrugged, “Do you want to do something, then? We could go see a movie or something?”

Rich shrugged, “Sure, sounds like fun.” He smiled and took another bite before speaking again. “Is there a movie you wanted to see?”

Michael hummed, “I dunno, maybe the new Spider-Man one?” He finished eating and moved to wash his dishes as he spoke.

Rich nodded, “Good idea.” He smirked. “Did you choose the theater so you could satisfy your popcorn addiction?” he teased.

Michael rolled his eyes, “I just thought it’d be something fun we could do together.” He put his dishes in the dishwasher, turned around and thought back to Rich’s actions a few days earlier. He smirked, approaching Rich’s unsuspecting form, still turned away as he ate. He was still wearing the apron, “The popcorn’s just a bonus.” He stopped next to Rich, waiting until he turned to look up at him, “You know, I think you missed the other day.”

Rich looked up at Michael, swallowing the bite of sausage in his mouth before speaking. He raised an eyebrow, “What are you talking about?”

The Alpha grinned, “The other day? When I was wearing the apron? You missed.” 

Rich was confused for a second. What was Michael talking about? As Michael’s face got closer, Rich’s eyebrows shot up.  _ There’s no way he is going to- _

Michael smirked, leaning in an pressing a quick kiss to Rich’s lips before pulling away and making his way out of the room, “Thanks for breakfast!” he called over his shoulder as he disappeared back down the stairs to his room.

Rich froze, his mind going blank as all processing stopped. His mind struggling to wrap itself around the brunet’s actions. It took a full five minutes before Rich looked around, unsure of how long he had been staring at the wall. His face went the brightest red possible, coloring down his chest and shoulders. He whined and put his face in his hands for a moment before cleaning up his mess and retreating up to his room. He put on his hoodie and pulled on the strings to hide his face as he sat on his bed with headphones in his ears, pretending his face didn’t make him look like a boiled lobster.


	12. Dibs

A few hours later Michael made his way upstairs to Rich’s room, figuring it was about time they left if they wanted to make it to the movie. He knocked on the door, “Rich, dude, are you ready to go?”

Rich jumped and quickly shoved his phone in his pocket. “Uh, y-yeah! Just give me a sec.” He pulled his hoodie back on and slipped on a pair of shoes before swinging the door open with a smile, “All set.”

Michael grinned, leading the way out of the house and to his car, “Do you mind if I run into Spencer’s really quick when we get there? The guy says he’s got another case of Red, and I want to have some more on hand in case any issues ever arise.”

Rich followed Michael, climbing into the passenger seat. “That's probably a good idea. Knowing the SQUIPs, they could survive a nuclear bomb. They'll find a way to come back eventually.”

“Sounds good,” Michael grinned, throwing his car into drive and heading towards the mall. He continued making conversation until he turned into a parking spot and got out of the car. “Is there anything else you want to do while we’re here?”

Rich shrugged, “Nothing I can think of. We can check movie times and just wander for a bit.” He pursed his lips, “Actually, I should probably look at getting some new bearings for my longboard. They're getting worn out.”

Michael nodded thoughtfully, “Okay. Do you want to go find those while I run to Spencers? We could meet up at the food court when we’re done?”

“Sounds good. I'll meet you over there in a bit.” He smiled and waved as he took off, on the wrong side of the mall for the skate shop. It took him a while, not having checked sizing before they left.

  
  
  


Michael had taken his case of Mountain Dew Red back to the car, before he made his way back into the food court. He took over one of the tables, pulling out his phone and playing a game as he waited for Rich. He wasn’t playing for long before the chair on the other side of the table got pulled out by a dark-haired guy that Michael had never seen before. 

The guy smiled at Michael, “Hey, what are you doing here by yourself? An Alpha like you shouldn't have to spend a Saturday evening all by himself.” He rested a hand on Michael's arm, thumb rubbing small circles through the fabric of the red hoodie.

Michael blinked, “Oh, uh, I’m not- I’m just waiting for my friend.” He smiled awkwardly, trying to casually slip his arm out of the Omega’s grasp without appearing rude.

“Well, if they're leaving you waiting, they couldn't be all that much fun.” The Omega scooted his chair closer to Michael's. “I'm sure I could keep you entertained.”

Michael leaned away slightly, the Omega’s advances making him kind of uncomfortable, “That’s really not necessary; he’s just picking something up and then he’ll be here. Thanks for the offer, though.”

The Omega rolled his eyes, “Oh, come on. Why didn't he just take you with then? If you ask me, he was probably sneaking off to meet with someone.” He looked up and noticed some of Michael's hair out of place. His hand came up, pushing it back where it belonged before slipping down to rest on Michael's shoulder looking him in the eye. “That doesn't sound like someone you should be spending time with, but I'd never do that to someone like you. You're a catch. Anyone would be lucky to have you.”

Michael eyed the Omega warily, all too aware of his lingering touches and the gleam in his eye, “No, he’s-” Michael sighed, “He’s not like that, okay? If he didn’t want me around, he would just tell me, alright?” He shrugged his shoulder, trying to shift the Omega’s hold off of him.

The Omega smirked, “Some Omegas are funny like that. Sometimes they're just too nervous to tell an Alpha to leave them alone.” He put a finger under Michael's chin, tipping it so Michael had to look him straight on. “If he still hasn't shown up by now, odds are he's not going to.” He leaned in close, daring to lean in for a kiss.

Rich grabbed the back of the Omega's shirt, yanking him back in his seat. “You probably shouldn't touch things that don't belong to you.” He grabbed the Omega's wrist and pulled it away from Michael. “If you don't keep your hands off of my Alpha, I'll break them, got it?” He glared at the other Omega, before shoving his hand away.

The Omega was shocked as he was pulled back. The look in the other Omega's eyes struck fear into him. He quickly nodded before stumbling to his feet and scampering away.

Rich sighed and turned back to Michael. “You doing okay?” He smiled at the Alpha, catching more of the Alpha's scent than he was used to. Maybe it was just from the other Omega being around.

Michael blinked, shocked at Rich’s sudden possessiveness, “I, um, I’m fine.” He raised an eyebrow, “But, uh,  _ your _ Alpha? When did that happen?”

Rich flushed, face going bright red. “I-I just- He- It-... I j-just said that so he’d leave.” He turned around and stared at the ground and pulled his hood up so Michael couldn’t see his face.

Michael chuckled, “Well, thanks either way; he was  _ not _ picking up the hint that I wasn’t interested.” Michael checked the time, “We’d better get moving if we want to make it to that movie,” he pointed out, getting to his feet.

Rich nodded, “Yeah, let’s go.”

  
  
  


The movie caught Michael’s attention pretty quickly, but Rich was less than enraptured. Rich was too focused on the attention they were gathering, more that Michael was gathering. Every Omega and Beta that looked in their direction had him on edge. He was quickly scooting closer and closer. By the end of the movie, Rich had his arms around Michael, glaring at anyone that looked at them.

Michael tore his gaze away from the screen as the credits began rolling, his brows furrowing as he looked over at Rich. “Is there a reason you’re clinging to my side and shooting death glares at literally everyone else in the theater?”

Rich flushed in the dim theater light. “I… didn’t like people staring…” He pulled his arms away from Michael and pulled his hood up again.

Michael shrugged, “I guess that makes sense.” He grinned, pushing Rich’s hood back down, “Stop doing that; I can’t see your cute face when you’re hiding.”

Rich groaned, flushing even darker still. “Nope.” He pulled up the hood again, pulling on the strings until all that was left was his eyes and nose.

“If you want to live the rest of your life as a hoodie burrito, I’m not going to stop you,” Michael chuckled, turning to make his way down the aisle, freezing as he came face-to-face with a Beta. “Um, hello there?”

The Beta girl smiled, “Hi, sorry, this is going to sound weird, but I wanted to come over and tell you that I think you’re really cute.” The girl rubbed the back of her neck nervously.

Michael smiled, trying to be nice, “Oh, um, thank you? Sorry if I’m awkward, I just- people don’t usually say things like that to me?”

She chuckled, “That’s surprising. Anyway, I was wondering if I could get your num-”

Rich had heard the word ‘cute’ and Michael’s awkward response. He pulled open his hood, no longer attempting to stumble down the aisle, but instead quickly making his way towards the duo. “Uh, no, nonononono,” he said as he planted himself between the Alpha and Beta. “Sorry, but I have dibs.”

Michael blinked, looking down at Rich in confusion. He bit his lip as he finally managed to wrap his head around the situation, before he looked back to the Beta apologetically, “I’m sorry; you seem like a really sweet person, but I’m gay.”

The Beta’s eyes widened as Michael responded. “Oh, s-sorry to bother you,” she stuttered. With a shy smile, she quickly made her way out of the theater.

Michael raised an eyebrow as the girl left before shooting a glance at Rich, “So, that was eventful… You want to go home?”

Rich smiled starting to lead the way out, “Yeah, heading home sounds like a good idea.” He could feel his face going slightly red when he realized what he had said to the Beta, but Michael didn’t seem to. Thank god.

When they reached the car, Michael waited until Rich had buckled up and he’d gotten the car moving before calling him out, “So, you’ve got dibs, huh?” He teased, pulling out of the mall parking lot.


	13. Pinned

When they reached the car, Michael waited until Rich had buckled up and he’d gotten the car moving before calling him out, “So, you’ve got dibs, huh?” He teased, pulling out of the mall parking lot.

Rich’s eyes went wide. “Uhhh… No Rich here.” He pulled the strings of his hood and pulled the neck up to hide his entire head inside of the hoodie.

Michael chuckled, “Too bad Rich is in Hoodie Town; I was going to say I didn’t mind…” He grinned, shooting a quick glance at the Omega.

“Good because I’m not taking it back,” Rich said from within the depths of the hoodie, not really processing what Michael meant.

“Who said you needed to?” Michael grinned, pulling into the driveway and putting the car in park. “I don’t mind the idea of you having dibs on me,” Michael exited the car quickly, moving towards the house before Rich had a chance to process his playful flirting.

Rich paused for a short moment before Michael’s words clicked. He frantically dug himself from the hoodie and sprung from the vehicle. “You get that fine ass back here and say that again! I want to know I heard you right!” He stopped for a second as his face went red, realizing the words that came out of his mouth.

Michael’s laughter echoed behind him as he entered the house, “You’re going to have to catch me first.” He grinned, sliding down the railing of the stairs into the basement and throwing himself onto the massive beanbag. 

Rich shook off the embarrassment and quickly bolted into the house. He tried to slide down the railing, losing his balance and tumbling onto the floor of the basement with a loud groan as he hit the ground. Rich curled up on the floor, clutching his arm.

Michael’s head shot up as he heard Rich groan and he quickly rolled over, getting to his feet and rushing to his side, “Holy shit, dude, are you okay?!”

Rich looked up at Michael with soft eyes. He quickly grabbed Michael's hoodie with a smirk and flipped them, sitting on his stomach. "Caught you." He chuckled and crossed his arms, "So, what was that about dibs?"

Michael huffed, looking away in faux disappointment. He smirked subtly, jerking his hips and rolling them over, pinning Rich. His smirk widened, “I  _ said _ that I didn’t mind if you had dibs on me.” He grinned, amused by the look on Rich’s face, before backing away to give Rich space to get up.

The Omega’s face flushed brightly at the Alpha above him. He sat up and smirked, looking Michael in the eye, “Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

Michael grinned, settling cross-legged with his back against the couch, “Thought it’d be obvious; I think you’re cute. I have for ages.”

Rich just blinked up at Michael for a few seconds. “Since when?!” he hollered as he flopped back on the floor dramatically.

Michael shrugged, “Since you got out of the hospital, I think? I mean, you were cute before, but you were also acting like an asshole ninety percent of the time, so…”

Rich nodded, “That’s fair. The brain sucker really wasn’t doing me any favors on that front.” He chuckled, “Especially not to get your attention. It really didn’t like that.”

“You wanted my attention?” Michael’s brows furrowed, “Why? You were  _ way _ higher on the social ladder than me; I doubted you even noticed me, aside from as a punching bag…”   
  


“I wasn’t always, remember?” Rich gave Michael a sad smile, “I kind of had a thing for you freshman year. I didn’t realize it was a crush at the time, but that’s beside the point.”

Michael blinked, “Wait. Wait, waitwaitwait. You, Richard Goranski, had a crush on me?” His eyebrows raised as he processed the information, “Honestly? Didn’t see that coming.”

Rich shrugged, “Well, I got the brain leech a few months later, so I didn’t really get a chance to pursue you. I probably wouldn’t have made it known anyway. I had fully expected to be an Alpha still.”

Michael laughed, “Well, I fully expected to, y’know,  _ not _ be one?” He rolled his eyes, “You should’ve said something; I bet tiny freshman Rich was adorable. I’d have loved getting to know you before that fucking floppy disk scrambled your brain.”

“I don't know about adorable, but I was way too shy to say anything back then.” He rubbed the back of his neck and gave an awkward chuckle, “We may or may not have had a couple of classes together.”

Michael paused thoughtfully, “Holy shit, we did! Oh my god, how didn’t I notice you back then? You were precious!” He grinned at the memory.

Rich flushed and turned his head to face the wall. “Oh, shut up,” he mumbled, crossing his arms.

Michael shook his head, chuckling softly, “Nah; you’re too fun to tease.”

Rich glared at Michael, “Oh yeah?” He lunged forward, tackling Michael and wrestling him to the floor, sitting on his stomach again. “Caught you again.” He pressed his hands to the floor on either side of Michael's face, grinning down at the Alpha.

Michael rolled his eyes, placing a hand on Rich’s shoulder and flipping them again. He quickly pinned him a second time, “Pinned you again.”

Rich huffed and pouted up at Michael, “Couldn't just let me win.”

Michael chuckled, shifting off of Rich, “Me? Let you win? Never.”

“Fine,” he crossed his arms and stared at the wall again. “I'll just have to find a way to keep you down next time.”

“Good luck with that,” Michael teased, getting to his feet.

Rich sat up, leaning back on his hands, “Challenge accepted.”

Michael rolled his eyes, “Everything’s a challenge with you.” He grinned fondly, jumping as his phone went off, breaking the silence. He checked his phone, “It’s my mom,” he announced, answering the call. He hummed thoughtfully in response to his mother’s words, “Okay, mom. We will. Love you too, see you when you get home from your trip.” When he hung up the phone, he grinned mischievously at Rich, “Moms left for their business trip; we’re alone for the week. You know what that means?”

Rich squeaked as the phone went off, spooked by the loud music. The Omega pushed himself to his feet, “Well, you aren't Jake, so I'm going to assume it's not a massive party.”

Michael smirked, moving to drag a box out of his closet and withdrawing a massive Nerf gun. “Total war.”


	14. All's Fair in Love and War...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Click the links to see the guns that the boys are using in each round!

The next morning dawned cold and clear; a perfect day for a brutal battle. Jeremy had come over that morning and the trio laid out some ground rules; no intentional face-shots, no leaving the battlefield (One of Jeremy and Michael’s matches lasted 27 hours because one had wandered into the backyard and the other stayed camped in the house), and the moms’ room was off limits. The boys piled anything and everything that was even remotely fragile into their room and blocked off the door. They reconvened in the front yard to assign weapons.

Jeremy held two hats with slips of paper inside, one with weapons and one to determine the order that they’d be able to enter the playing field. “Remember men, on the line today is glory, honor, and not having to dramatically reenact a moment of the winner’s choosing from Twilight. It’s best of three, so make every shot count.” He turned to Michael, holding out the hats, “Pick your poison, soldier.”

Michael grinned, pulling his weapon, “I get the  [ Nemesis ](http://nerfpedialegacy.wikia.com/wiki/Nemesis_MXVII-10K) ,” He retrieved the huge red blaster and then pulled his number, “And I’m going in first.”

Jeremy nodded, holding out the hats for Rich. He rolled his eyes, drawing his weapon, “ [ Doublestrike ](http://nerfpedialegacy.wikia.com/wiki/Doublestrike) ?” Michael smirked, handing him a small revolver and a handful of darts. He groaned as he pulled his number, “I go third.”

“Which means I’m going in second,” Jeremy grinned, pulling the name of his weapon from the hat, “I get to use the  [ Raptorstrike ](http://nerfpedialegacy.wikia.com/wiki/Raptorstrike) !” Michael groaned, handing over the large sniper blaster.

Michael rolled his eyes, “I’m going in. Jer, you can go in in one minute. Rich, one minute after Jer.” When both nodded he grinned, shouldering his blaster and running into the house.

  
  
  
  


Rich hesitated before he opened the door, keeping his blaster held in front of him warily as he glanced around, hoping he wasn’t about to make a fool out of himself by being the first one out. He pressed his back against one of the walls, creeping down the hall and closer to the center of the house. He paused as he got closer to the spot where the hall with the stairs bisected the entryway, his eyes narrowed and he took a quick step forward before jerking back behind the corner as a dart whistled past him. 

“Shit,” he could hear Jeremy hiss, knowing that his position had been given away. Rich grinned, darting around the corner and shooting quickly, his foam bullet arching perfectly up the length of the stairs and hitting Jeremy on the shoulder, which had been exposed by the way he was laying with his sniper rifle pointed down the stairs. Jeremy sighed, setting down his gun and raising his hands in surrender.

Rich let out a triumphant cheer, pleased to have gotten one of the pair out. “One down, one to go,” he grinned, making his way further into the house.

  
  
  
  


Michael shifted restlessly within the darkness of his hiding place.  _ It’s been twenty minutes, _ he thought,  _ I should have seen  _ someone _ by now… _ He readjusted his hold on his gun, peering through the narrow eyehole that he’d left himself when he sealed himself in. He checked his phone, grinning as he read the text that confirmed that the round was down to him and Rich.  _ Rich isn’t the kind of guy who’s going to sit and camp. I just need to be patient. _ He smiled slightly,  _ Or I could bait him in… _ He nodded to himself, taking aim at a controller that was precariously balanced on the edge of the coffee table below him and knocking it off with a loud clatter.

Rich’s head snapped around as he heard the controller hit the floor. He knew where that was. He bolted down the stairs as quietly as he could, listening for any other movement. He peeked into the living room, not finding anything out of the ordinary. Where was Michael hiding? He walked into the living room quietly, assuming Michael had snuck into the kitchen or something. His eyes darted back and forth between every piece of furniture, making sure nothing moved and Michael didn’t jump out.

Michael smirked as Rich wandered into his territory, pressing the tip of his gun to the gap in the tiles and waiting for the perfect shot. As soon as Rich turned to look behind the couch, Michael pulled the trigger, hitting him squarely between the shoulders.

“Fuck!” Rich spun around, quickly looking around. “Where the fuck are you?” He looked around knowing Michael couldn’t have hit him like that from the kitchen. It was then he noticed the gap in the tiles. “Are you kidding me? If I realized that was fair I would have actually paid attention to that.”

Michael laughed, moving one of the ceiling tiles out of the way and slowly lowering himself back to the ground. “Joke’s on you then, I’ll always be the king of war.” He nudged the tile that covered his hiding place in the ceiling back into place.

Rich huffed, “I didn’t think you’d fit up there to begin with. I have to give you props though. That was a good spot.” He shot Michael in the chest with his other dart. “Doesn’t count but I still wanted to shoot you.” He smirked and went to retrieve the darts.

Michael rolled his eyes, “Fair enough.” He paused, pressing a hand to his chest overdramatically, “Rich, did you just imply that I’m fat?!”

Rich laughed, “No, let me put it this way. I’m smaller than you, and I didn’t think there would be enough space up there for me.”

“Why do you think I still continue to use this spot?” Michael chuckled, “No one thinks to look in the ceiling.” He paused, “Well, that and Jeremy still screams like a girl when I drop out right in front of him.”

Rich smirked, “That’s fair. It’d be pretty fun to scare the piss out of him once in a while.” He went to retrieve his darts, making sure they left no traces of the Nerf war.

Michael chuckled, “You should see him at a haunted house.” He turned around, grabbing his stray darts and leading the way back outside where Jeremy was waiting. “You boys ready for round two?”

Rich clapped his hands together as he followed Michael. “Let’s do this. I’m ready to actually kick your butt this time, Michael!” He jumped up and down a few times, too full of energy for his own good.

Jeremy rolled his eyes, holding out the hats as the two made their way back out to the front yard. “Good luck with that, Rich. Me and Michael are currently stuck nineteen to forty-seven. You really think that you have a shot at taking him down?”

Michael rolled his eyes, pulling a piece of paper from each hat. “I get the  [ Infinus ](https://nerf.hasbro.com/en-us/product/nerf-n-strike-elite-infinus:314ECA20-AE79-4112-AF35-55B0B958D93E) and I’m in third.” Jeremy nodded, holding the hats out to Rich as Michael grabbed his blaster and ammo.

Jeremy chuckled, pulling his number and blaster, “First with the  [ Nemesis ](http://nerfpedialegacy.wikia.com/wiki/Nemesis_MXVII-10K) ,” he grinned.

Rich sighed, “And that means I’m going in second and I get,” he drew for his gun, “the  [ Maverick ](http://nerfpedialegacy.wikia.com/wiki/Maverick_REV-6) ?”

Jeremy grinned, handing him the revolver before turning and making his way into the house. Michael waited a moment before turning to Rich, “Just a warning; Jer’s not going to be camping this round. He thinks you’ve got him figured out and he’s gonna try and surprise you by moving around a lot. He’s gonna try and corner one of us, so be on the lookout.”

Rich smirked, “Good to know. I’ll be watching for him, but don’t think you’re going to get past me. I’ll be watching for you too.” He opened the door and backed his way through it, winking at Michael before dashing off through the house to find Jeremy.

Michael rolled his eyes, waiting his required one minute before following after Rich. 

  
  
  
  


Michael kept his back to the wall as he made his way through the entryway, listening intently for any sign that either of the boys were lingering at the top of the stairs. He made his way slowly down the stairs into the basement, figuring that if no one was down there then at least he’d have a room to stay in that he knew was safe.

He checked anywhere he thought either Jeremy or Rich could fit and gave a sigh of relief when he came up empty handed. His relief was cut short when he felt the cold plastic of a Nerf gun against the center of his back.

“Drop your weapon,” Jeremy hissed, careful to keep himself out of Michael’s range. He pressed the gun tighter to his back, only relenting when Michael’s own blaster clattered to the floor and he raised his hands in surrender. Jeremy pressed him forward until he was standing against the far wall, hands behind him as he faced Jeremy; prepared to take his death like a man. “Any last words?” Jeremy grinned, the barrel of his gun level with Michael’s chest.

There was a click behind Jeremy as Rich cocked his gun. “He might not, but I do.” He pressed the plastic revolver to the back of Jeremy’s skull. “Not my Alpha, you dick.” He pulled the trigger, the foam bullet thumping Jeremy on the back of his head.

Michael’s eyes widened as Jeremy dropped, his gaze confused for just an instant before darting up to meet Rich’s eyes. “Rich,” he gasped, quickly making his way across the room to wrap his arms around the Omega, “Dude, you’re my hero!”

Rich was too happy at saving Michael to pay attention, jumping as Michael hugged him. “Oh, uh, you’re welcome, I guess.” He wrapped his arms hesitantly around Michael, unsure of what was happening.

Michael grinned softly, one hand slipping down the length of Rich’s arm softly before he snatched Rich’s Nerf gun from him and backed away, keeping the weapon extended between them. “Thanks for the assist, but this is not how I go down.”

Rich held up his hands in surrender, eyes wide as he processed Michael’s sudden change in personality. “You wouldn't shoot an unarmed man.”

Michael smirked, his grip tightening on the plastic gun. “Think again,” he said before pulling the trigger.

Rich flinched as the foam bullet pegged him in the chest. He pressed both hands to where he’d been hit, stumbling. “So that’s what it does-” he gasped, dropping to his knees. His eyes rolled back before slowly falling to face plant onto the floor.

Michael rolled his eyes, “I knew you didn’t fall asleep during The Avengers, you dirty liar.”

Rich quickly rolled over to glare at Michael, “You know Phil Coulson was the best character and there is  _ no way _ I could sleep through any scene he was in.”

“And yet you could sleep while Thor or Loki were on screen?” Michael raised an eyebrow, “Better watch yourself, Goranski; they’re gonna take away your Bisexuality Badge.”

“I could because there are other movies that give them more screen time. If I want to appreciate them, I’ll watch those movies. If I want to appreciate Coulson and Fury being snarky smartasses, I watch Avengers.” He huffed and sat up, crossing his arms.

Michael huffed, “You and I both know the end of Avengers was fantastic and I’m still disappointed in you for sleeping through it, but we have more important matters to deal with right now,” he teased, chuckling as he turned to Jeremy, “You ready to sparkle, Jer?”

  
  
  
  


Jeremy sighed as he took his place in the middle of the yard, shivering slightly in the cool mid-October air. “Michael, is this really necessary?” he asked, kind of hoping he’d be able to talk his way out of the situation.

“Would you be arguing if it were me or Rich that was going to be pelted with glitter balloons?” Michael retorted, raising his eyebrow.

Jeremy paused, biting his lip as he looked contemplatively at the glitter-filled water balloons that Rich and Michael held. “You’ve got a point there,” he conceded. He pulled off his shirt and brought his hands up to cover his face, “Bring it on.”

Rich and Michael shared a grin before launching the water balloons at Jeremy, making sure to cover him in the glitter. Once they’d run out of ammunition, Michael let the brunet know it was safe to uncover his face. “Okay, dude, you officially look like Edward’s long-lost prepubescent brother.”

Jeremy smiled sarcastically, “Great. Just what I’ve always wanted.” He shivered slightly, “Okay, but really, are we done now? It’s freezing and I want to go home and shower to get rid of this mess.” He gestured to his now sparkly chest.

Rich nodded, “Yeah. This seems like punishment enough.” He chuckled as he started to pick up the pieces of the balloons. “Once you de-glitter yourself, you should come back and do video games. Maybe we can team up to take Michael down.”

“Sounds like fun,” he shivered again, shaking his head to try and get rid of some of the water in his hair.

“Jer, why don’t you just shower here?” Michael interrupted, “That way you don’t have to walk home like that or worry about me having to take you home and then come get you again. You can just borrow some of my clothes or something?”

Jeremy nodded, “That’d be great. Thanks, Michael.”

Michael grinned, moving to ruffle Jeremy’s hair affectionately before thinking better of it, “Anything for you, dude.” He turned, leading the pair back inside and down to the basement. Jeremy split off to go shower, leaving just Rich and Michael. “Well, that was fun,” Michael huffed, sprawling out on his beanbag.

Rich pulled over another bean bag beside Michael’s and flopped down on it. “Yeah, that was fun. I don’t think Jeremy is going to be getting that glitter out of his clothes for months.” He chuckled and twisted to look at Michael.

“Oh, definitely not; that shit gets everywhere,” Michael laughed. He picked up one of the nearby controllers and started a game, absentmindedly steering his character through the level as they waited for Jeremy. “It’s the herpes of the craft world.”

Rich laughed and turned around, laying on his stomach and facing the screen. “That is so true. Easy to pass around but a bitch to get rid of.” He pointed things out in the level as he subconsciously scooted his beanbag closer to Michael’s.

Michael snorted, laughing quietly as he evaded one of the enemies’ attacks, “I wish I could say I feel bad for him.”

“Better him than us, because you know if one of us gets stuck with glitter herpes, both of us are going to end up with it.” The Omega looked around before getting up to find a blanket, cocooning himself in it before laying back down.

“That’s a good point,” Michael agreed, shooting Rich a grin. He raised an eyebrow as he noticed Rich’s blanket-burrito state, “Cold?”

Rich glanced up at Michael and shrugged, “Just a little.” He burrowed down further into the blanket so only his eyes and the top of his head were exposed.

“You want my hoodie?” Michael asked, barely glancing away from the screen, even as Jeremy wandered back into the room and pulled up a seat on his other side.

The Omega perked up, “Please?” He sat up and carefully untangled himself from the blanket enough to free his arms.

Michael nodded, pausing the game and tugging off his sweatshirt. He handed it to Rich with a soft grin, hardly even registering how much closer the Omega had gotten. He turned back to the screen as Jeremy picked up his own controller and joined the game, the two quickly falling into sync as they progressed through the game.

Rich pulled the hoodie on before wrapping himself back in his cocoon and falling back down to lay on the beanbag again. He wiggled around until he was laying sideways on the beanbag with his head on the edge of Michael’s watching the screen intently.

Michael kept his gaze on the screen, occasionally allowing himself to glance over at Jeremy to point out an oncoming enemy or a bonus item, “Jer, fuck, watch where you’re shooting!” he exclaimed, jerking slightly in alarm as his character was nearly hit.

“Shit, sorry Micah,” Jeremy muttered, trying to avoid another attacking zombie.

“It’s fine,” Michael mumbled, turning to kill a zombie that’d been approaching from behind him. “Just watch what you’re doing instead of staring at my avatar’s ass,” he teased.

Rich huffed as he listened to the two friends talking, not liking how flirty the conversation sounded. He grumbled and wriggled further onto Michael’s beanbag, laying his head in the Alpha’s lap.

Michael raised an eyebrow as he shot a confused glance down at Rich, “Uh, you comfortable?” he asked, teasing the Omega playfully. He quickly returned his attention to the screen as his controller vibrated in his hands, signaling that he’d been hit.

“Yep,” Rich said with a nod. He glared at Jeremy out of the corner of his eye. No one was allowed to flirt with Michael except for Rich. After a while, he let the glare drop, returning to watching the game.

Michael chuckled, running a hand through Rich’s hair fondly before returning both hands to the controller. His focus remained on the game until Jeremy paused it around an hour later to check his phone. “Shit,” Jeremy muttered, “My dad wants me to head home. I’ll see you guys tomorrow at school?”

“You want me to drive you home?” Michael asked, setting his controller aside as Jeremy stood.

“That’s okay; I think I’m just going to walk.” He sighed, picking up the bag with his glitter-splattered clothes, “I’ll wash your stuff and get it back to you soon, okay?”

Michael nodded, carefully edging himself out from under Rich’s head to follow Jeremy upstairs and lock the door after him. He said his goodbyes before making his way back down into the basement. He leaned against the wall beside the stairs, watching Rich curiously, “You feeling okay?”

The Omega watched his two friends get up to leave, displeased by being moved, but refusing to get up. He lay there, waiting for Michael to come back. Rich rolled over to look at Michael. “Yeah, I’m alright. Why?”

Michael shrugged, “I dunno, I guess you just seem a bit off tonight?” He sighed, making his way back to his previous seat but not making an effort to get Rich to continue using his lap as a pillow, “Might just be me overthinking again.”

Rich pursed his lips, sitting up in his blanket-burrito. “Sorry, maybe I am feeling a bit weird, but I’m okay.” He fidgeted with the edge of Michael’s hoodie sleeve under the blanket.

Michael bit his lip, trying not to let on how worried he was, “Maybe you should just head to bed? A good night’s sleep will probably have you feeling better by morning.”

“Maybe, but,” Rich said quietly. His cheeks went red as he unwrapped himself from the blanket, “this first?” he asked as he sat on the edge of Michael’s beanbag, leaning his head on the Alpha’s shoulder.

Michael blinked, looking down at Rich curiously. “Someone’s feeling cuddly this evening,” he pointed out, hoping Rich’s response to his teasing would help him figure out what was going on. “Any particular reason or…?”

Rich shifted slightly so he couldn’t look up at Michael, face turning even more red. “Just wanted to. I don’t know.” He scooted closer, leaning his head into the crook of Michael’s neck, holding onto the hoodie sleeves so he wouldn’t cling to Michael like he wanted to.

“I- okay, I guess,” Michael mumbled, shifting closer to Rich and slipping his arms around him to rest comfortably around his waist. “Just for a few minutes, okay? Then we should really get you to bed.”

Rich wrapped his arms around Michael and nuzzled into his chest. “Deal.” He took a deep breath and sighed, taking in the Alpha’s scent and letting it calm him. Rich closed his eyes and relaxed, melting against Michael’s side as he slowly started to drift out of consciousness.

Michael let Rich slump against him, sighing softly as his breathing slowed and knowing that he didn’t have the heart to wake him up. He shifted out from under Rich, picking him up and carrying him across the room. He laid him down on his bed, pulling a couple of blankets over him before turning and flopping down on the beanbag couch. Michael rolled over, falling asleep quickly.


	15. Sick

When Michael’s alarm went off the next morning, he groaned tiredly and forced himself to get up. He wandered over to his bed and nudged Rich’s shoulder gently, “C’mon, Rich, it’s time to get up.”

Rich grumbled at the sound of the alarm going off. His head was throbbing and his stomach was in knots. “Noooooo,” he whined, pulling the blanket over his head. He curled up tighter, hoping Michael wouldn’t make him move. He pulled the blanket closer to his face, inhaling the scent, feeling the ache in his skull dull slightly.

“Rich,” Michael prompted, tugging at the edge of the blanket, “C’mon, man, you’ve gotta wake up; we have school today.”

“I am not moving. If I move, I might just throw up,” Rich said quietly, peeking out of the blanket. “That and my head is killing me.” His face was flushed and sweaty, and his temperature was starting to rise.

Michael sighed, biting his lip as he realized that Rich wasn’t just playing around. “You’re staying home today,” he relented. “I’ll pick up whatever work you miss. Just focus on feeling better, okay?”

Rich nodded and buried himself under the blanket again. “Thanks, Michael,” he mumbled, curling up into a tiny ball. “I'll leave your room as soon as I can. Hopefully, I won't get you sick too.”

“Don’t worry about it, dude,” Michael said softly, running his hand along Rich’s shoulder comfortingly, “I’m not too worried about that. Just- feel better, okay?” he asked quietly before slipping into the bathroom to get ready for school.

Rich sighed, “Yeah, okay.” When Michael left, the Omega started shivering, bundling himself tighter in the blanket, trying to force down the tiny whimpers in his throat.

Michael’s brows furrowed as he made his way out of the bathroom and he heard Rich’s muffled whining. “Do you want me to stay with you?” He asked, hoping it wasn’t obvious that he was concerned.

Rich shook his head, “No, I'll be okay. Don't want to get you sick.” He curled up even smaller, making the short Omega seem even smaller.

Michael bit his lip, eyes darting between Rich and the door. “If you’re sure… Just call me if you need anything, okay? Anything at all.”

Rich nodded, a shiver running down his spine. “I will.” He swallowed a whimper, not wanting Michael to worry any more than he already was.

“I’ll see you in a few hours then, I guess,” Michael shot him one last grin before turning on his heel and making his way up the stairs, the sound of the front door echoing loudly behind him.

The moment the front door closed, Rich whimpered, regretting letting Michael leave him alone. After a while, he decided to get up. He stole the blanket from Michael's bed, dragging it up to his room with him. If he was sick, he wanted to get out of the basement as soon as he could. He dug out every blanket he had, throwing them all on his bed and adjusting them to where he wanted them.

  
  
  


A day of school usually passed relatively quickly for Michael, but today each minute seemed to pass at a crawl. He could hardly keep his eyes off of the clock as he waited for it to be time to go home and see if Rich was doing any better. He checked his phone whenever he could get away with it and when he couldn’t his mind was on his friend’s state.

He sighed as yet another teacher chastised him for his absent state of mind. He shook his head softly, gaze dropping to fixate on the notebook in front of him. He couldn’t figure out why he couldn’t stop thinking about the Omega; sure, he was worried about his sick friend, but even when Jeremy got really sick in the past he’d been able to focus on other things. Now though all he could do was count the seconds until he could go home again.

  
  
  


Rich spent most of the day gathering blankets, pillows, and anything soft he could find to build his nest, not realizing that that was what he was doing. When he wasn't building the nest, he was curled up in it sleeping or whimpering to himself. He picked up his phone and debated asking Michael to come home but decided against it. Instead he sent a quick message, [Miss you] before going back to trying to distract himself with the nest.

  
  
  


Finally, the final bell had rung and Michael was able to head home. His shoulders slumped as the tension he hadn’t realized he’d been feeling rushed out of him as he unlocked the front door. He dropped his backpack beside the front door, checking in the basement to see if Rich had still taken over his bed before starting up the stairs to the upper floor, assuming that Rich must’ve headed back to his own room at some point throughout the day. “Rich?” he asked, knocking softly on the Omega’s bedroom door so he wouldn’t disturb him if he’d fallen asleep.

Rich perked up when he heard the door open. Michael was home. He shifted in the nest, listening for the Alpha to come up the stairs. His entire room was saturated with the scent of Omega. He whimpered and squirmed when he heard Michael knock on the door.

Michael’s brows furrowed at the sound of Rich’s whimper, “You okay, Rich?” He asked, somewhat puzzled by the scent that was hitting him; drawing him closer to the door and the Omega behind it. 

Rich whined and dragged a blanket with him as he wandered toward the door. He opened it and looked up at Michael, the smell flooding out of the room. He looked up at the Alpha and whined as he stepped close enough to lean his head on Michael's chest.

Michael blinked as the wave of scent hit him, the sheer force of it sending his mind reeling for a moment. His brows furrowed as he regained his senses to find Rich’s head against his chest. “What- I-” He shook his head and took a step back, trying to get some air that wouldn’t cloud his thoughts further. “What’s going on?” His eyes widened as he realized what Rich was showing symptoms of. The sudden clinginess, the shivering, the whining. It all added up to one thing. He took a few more steps back, knowing that him being close to Rich would only make it worse. “Rich, I don’t think you’re getting sick.”

Rich whimpered when Michael stepped away. He wanted to be close. It helped his head stop hurting. He blinked up at his friend for a moment before his brain could process. “What else would it be?” he mumbled, wrapping the blanket tightly around himself.

Michael cleared his throat and averting his gaze to try and maintain his composure, “Rich, I think you’re going into heat.”

The Omega's brows furrowed as he made sense of what Michael said. He took a couple steps back to distance himself from the Alpha. “Sorry, I didn't think that was supposed to happen for a few months.” His face flushed more than it already was.

Michael shook his head, “It ideally wouldn’t have. I assume that being around me so much is what jump-started it. Being around a  _ normal _ unmated Alpha can fuck with an Omega’s cycle, so being around me?” Michael chuckled bitterly. “Even on suppressants, I’m a lot to deal with.” He sighed, backing away further, “Look, I can go stay with Jer for the next few days or lock myself down in the basement or something. Since it’s your first one, this shouldn’t be nearly as bad; the worst you’ll be is kind of horny, and it’s not like that’s abnormal for you,” Michael attempted to joke, hoping he’d be able to at least distract Rich from the situation.

Rich nodded and gave Michael a small smile. “Shouldn't be much worse than normal, right?” he tried to joke back. He pointed back to his bed. “I should probably go lay back down and let you get to the basement. It should be far enough away.”

Michael nodded, shooting Rich a sympathetic look before turning to make his way back downstairs. “Let me know if you need anything, okay? I’ll bring you food or whatever when you need it.”

Rich lingered and watched Michael leaving. “Okay,” he said quietly, feeling the throbbing in his head return. When Michael was out of sight, he went back to his bed, laying down in his nest and fixing it up some more, feeling slightly chilled with how large the nest was compared to the small Omega. He was lonely and wanted Michael to come back, but the Alpha didn't seem to want to be there, so he wasn't going to push it right now.

Michael knew that this was going to be a long few days for the both of them; Rich would be anxious and trying to get closer to him and Michael knew that he’d start behaving aggressively if he kept himself away from Rich. On the other hand, he could lose control if he allowed himself to stay with Rich and he didn’t want to risk doing anything that could end up with Rich getting hurt. He sighed as he closed the basement door behind him and double-checking that it locked. He shot a text to Jeremy, letting him know what the situation was and that odds were neither of them would be at school for the next few days. With that out of the way, Michael flopped down on his beanbag and turned on the TV, starting a game and blaring the volume as loud as he could; determined to distract himself so he didn’t think about the Omega up the stairs.

  
  
  


Rich spent the next couple of days whimpering and whining, trying to get Michael to come stay with him. It was useless. Michael would leave food or water for Rich in the hallway before retreating to the basement before Rich could even begin to extricate himself from his layers of blankets. By this point, he couldn't stand being alone anymore. Even his own whimpers were making his head hurt worse. Even the light in the hallway was making the migraine worse. Taking matters into his own hands, he wandered downstairs toward the basement with a blanket wrapped tightly around himself. He just needed to be closer. When he tested the door and found it locked, he gave a small whine and curled up on the floor. This was at least closer than his bedroom. That would help.

  
  
  


A few more hours passed before Michael dragged his gaze away from the screen and forced himself to stand. He rubbed at his eyes tiredly as he made his way up the stairs, knowing that it was time to bring Rich something to eat before locking himself away again. He sighed as he unlocked the door, knowing that he was only going to be able to distract himself with video games for so much longer.

His eyes widened as they locked onto Rich, curled up with his eyes closed on the floor just past the basement door. He swallowed nervously, but stepped out anyway, edging himself along the wall so he didn’t disturb the sleeping Omega as he slipped into the kitchen. He hurried to make each of them something to eat, hoping he’d be able to make it back into his safe room before Rich woke up.

The moment the door clicked, Rich was awake, keeping his eyes closed and staying silent to see what Michael would do. When the Alpha headed to the kitchen, Rich shifted in front of the basement door so Michael couldn't open it.

Michael made his way back into the room with two plates, each laden with food. He blinked as he realized that Rich had moved to block his way. He set one of the plates down on the floor nearby before creeping closer. “You need to move, buddy.”

Rich whimpered quietly, opening his eyes to look up at Michael. He reached out for the Alpha, just needing to be closer. He whined, eyes pleading for Michael to stay with him.

Michael’s heart twisted in his chest and it was all he could do to keep from dropping to his knees in front of Rich and wrapping his arms around him and not letting go. It took all of his willpower to press forward and nudge him carefully out of the way, trying to avoid as much contact as possible before he could get the door open and slip through, closing it and locking it behind him again with hardly more than a whispered apology. It hurt, but he knew it’d be better for the both of them to remain apart.

When Michael locked the door, Rich felt tears well in his eyes. He needed the Alpha close, needed his scent to ease his mind. He buried his nose into the red hoodie still on his body, barely smelling the Alpha in the fabric anymore. He whimpered and whined until he eventually cried himself to sleep on the floor outside the basement door.

  
  
  


Michael held out for a few more hours before his resolve cracked. He knew that since it was Rich’s first heat, he wouldn’t be nearly as likely to want anything more than being near the closest Alpha, but it had never been Rich that he was worried about; he was more worried about himself losing control and accidentally hurting him or doing something that Rich would resent him for. He sighed, shutting off his game and making his way up to the top of the stairs. He bit his lip when he realized that Rich was still lying there and made up his mind. He unlocked the door before making his way back down the stairs, figuring that at least this way Rich would be the one to decide how they proceeded. He exhaled slowly as he sprawled out on his bed, closing his eyes and falling asleep.

Rich noticed the sound of the lock click and blinked awake. He looked around and didn't see the Alpha, confused as to where he was if the door was unlocked. The Omega sat up and looked thought for a moment before trying the handle. When the door opened, he perked up, understanding it to be an invitation. Rich quickly moved up the stairs to his room to grab everything he had used to make his nest, dragging it all quietly to the basement. Once he was there he looked over at Michael, trying to make sure this was okay, but the Alpha was asleep. Rich finally concluded that Michael wouldn't have unlocked the door if he wasn't okay with Rich joining him. The Omega set to work in creating a new nest around the Alpha, organizing pillows and blankets into a perfect arrangement to be the most comfortable and warm for the both of them. After nearly an hour of slowly and gently moving around the Alpha, Rich finally laid down beside Michael, cuddling up to him. He put his head on Michael's chest and let his friend's heartbeat lull him to sleep as the ache in his skull finally subsided.

  
  
  


When Michael woke up with his arms around Rich his heart immediately lurched in his chest, panic rising as he struggled to remember the previous night’s events. He relaxed as he remembered unlocking the door, assuming that Rich must’ve tried the door and stumbled his way into his bed, doing what he could to alleviate his symptoms. In this case, it meant cuddling up to him. He exhaled quietly, wiggling to free his arms from the mountain of blankets and reaching for his phone, fully aware that Rich wouldn’t be letting go of him anytime soon.

Rich groaned when the Alpha moved underneath him, jostling the Omega awake. His arms tightened around Michael, refusing to let him leave. He tipped his head to look up at Michael, blinking awake. “Sorry, couldn't stand being alone anymore,” he mumbled.

Michael sighed, laying his head back down on the pillow so he wouldn’t have to meet Rich’s eyes, “I’m sorry I made you be for so long.” He kept his gaze cast to the side, “I didn’t trust myself to be near you without hurting you.”

Rich rolled his eyes, “You wouldn't have hurt me.” He nuzzled into Michael's chest and sighed, “I shouldn't have been bothering you to begin with. Sorry.”

“I could have,” Michael shook his head, eyes trained on the ceiling. “I could’ve lost control and I wouldn’t even blame you for hating me.” He huffed, “The next time you go into heat, we need to have some sort of plan in place; I can’t be here.”

Rich let out a whine. “What if I want you to stay?” He felt his face flush, avoiding looking up at the Alpha. “I don't think you could do anything that would actually hurt me.”

“You do understand what the point of a heat is, right?” Michael huffed, “I struggled this time around; how the hell do you think I’d manage when your heat was actually full force?” He shook his head again, “It wouldn’t be a good idea, Rich.”

Rich swallowed hard, mumbling to himself, “Yeah, I understand.” He sighed, loosening his hold on the Alpha, “I get it.” The Omega swallowed back a whine, feeling caught between acceptance and rejection.

Michael bit his lip, “Rich, you sound like you’re upset. Can we just- just talk about this when your heat isn’t messing with your head?”

Rich nodded, “Sure.” He buried his face in Michael's chest again, taking a deep breath of his scent to stop the forming headache. His next heat was a problem for a different day. He clung to the Alpha, not wanting to let go until he had to.

Michael huffed slightly as Rich pressed himself closer and rolled over onto his side so he’d be able to see the TV, turning on a movie so they could pass the time easier. He sighed, curling closer to Rich and hoping that it wasn’t obvious how much the thought of Rich wanting him to stay for his next one had gotten to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If y'all thought the porn had arrived, you thought wrong


	16. Halloween

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains sexual assault, panic attacks, violence, and discussion of abuse. None of it is graphic, but please feel free to skip this chapter if you think any of this topics may disturb you.

The music was pounding, the beat thrumming through Michael where he lingered on the edge of the crowd, looking out over the swarming mass of costumed party-goers taking up space in the middle of Jake’s living room. He lowered his gaze as he made eye contact with a dark-haired guy dancing in the center of the mob of people. He crossed his arms, feeling far more exposed in Rich’s muscle shirt than he ever did in his own hoodie. He tried to subtly look around for the shorter Omega, surprised at how hard it was to find someone dressed like  _ him _ .

“We meet again, I see,” Michael jolted, blinking in surprise as he realized who was talking to him. The dark-haired male who’d been dancing was the same Omega that Rich had threatened that day in the mall.

“Oh, uh, hello again,” Michael replied, still half-heartedly looking around for Rich.

The Omega smirked, “Got rid of the hoodie, I see. I like it. I can see what I have to work with now.” He moved closer to Michael, trying to get the Alpha to dance.

Michael cleared his throat awkwardly, not meeting his eyes, “Don’t worry; I’ll be putting that hoodie on again by the end of the night,” Michael replied, hoping that the statement would be enough to deter the Omega. “I’m only not wearing it because my friend and I decided to go as each other.”

The Omega chuckled, “Well, thank him for me. Whoever he is, he got you to wear something a little more fun.” He tugged on the shirt a little to emphasize his point.

“You should thank him yourself,” Michael retorted, taking a step back to give himself a little more room to breathe. “You and he got pretty well acquainted the last time we met.”

“Oh did we? I'll have to reacquaint myself later, but I'd rather have a little fun first.” He placed a hand on Michael's chest, following Michael with each step backward until he hit the wall.

Michael flinched as his back connected with the wall behind him. He wrapped a hand around the Omega’s wrist, shifting to remove his hold on him, “I’d rather you didn’t,” he replied easily, trying to hide how nervous the guy was making him.

The Omega pouted and ran a hand through Michael's hair before standing on his toes to whisper in his ear, “Oh, come on. Loosen up; it’s Halloween. Have a little fun.” The Omega pressed himself against Michael, grinding their hips together. His knee pushed between the Alpha's, thigh pressing lightly against his crotch. “Parties are about enjoying ourselves, right?” He pulled the Alpha's head down within reach, planting a kiss on his lips as his other hand slipped down the front of Michael's jeans.

Michael reeled back, placing his hands on the Omega’s shoulders and pushing him away. His eyes were wide as he stepped away, turning on his heel and disappearing through the crowd. He moved on habit, weaving around corners and down halls until he found himself in the same bathroom as he had exactly a year ago. He locked the door behind him, pacing the length of the room as he tried to calm his breathing.

* * *

  
  


Several minutes later, Rich was approached by one of the other party goers, informing him about the scene that had gone down moments ago. Without a second thought, Rich was sprinting through the party, trying to track down his friend. He stopped at the bathroom and listened at the door for a moment before tapping on it. “Michael, you in there?”

Michael had wedged himself into the space between the bathtub and the sink with his back pressed firmly against the wall and his shaking hands holding his knees to his chest. He whined softly in response to Rich’s voice, acknowledging him but making no move to open the door.

Rich leaned his head on the door, pressing his palms against it, wanting to help. “Michael, open the door so I can help. Please?” He tried to twist the knob to make sure it was locked. “Let me in, okay?”

Michael whined again, forcing himself to his feet after a moment. He paused, staring at himself in the mirror and trying to make himself look less like he was about to cry. The lock clicked and Michael moved to sit on the edge of the tub before Rich could open the door.

When the door clicked, Rich quickly opened the door, closing and locking it behind him. The Omega quickly knelt down in front of Michael, “Hey, what happened?” The worry in his eyes was very apparent even with the spark of anger drowned out by it.

“I- I don’t-” Michael shook his head, trying to put his thoughts in order, “That guy- the one from the mall? He was here and he tried to- to get me to dance with him. I said no, and he just kept flirting with me even though I asked him to back off.” Michael swallowed, forcing himself to keep talking even though the last thing he wanted to do was remember, “He backed me up against the wall and then he-” his voice cut out slightly, “he k-kissed me.” Michael knew that he wasn’t telling Rich the whole story, but he also knew that the Omega would already be mad enough without hearing all the details.

Rich swallowed the growl in his throat. He could deal with that later. “You have every right to be freaking out, okay?” He glanced down before pulling Michael's hoodie over his head. “This should help.” He gently helped Michael put the hoodie on and smiled, taking the Alpha's hands and squeezing them. “Is that a little better?”

Michael let out a sigh of relief when he was back to being surrounded by the familiar fleece of his hoodie, nodding in response to Rich’s questions. “Thanks,” he murmured softly, returning the pressure on his hands before slipping them into the pocket of his hoodie. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have panicked, I just- I didn’t know what to do so I just ran and-” he cut himself off, nudging his glasses up the bridge of his nose and getting to his feet. “Look, if you don’t want to, you don’t have to, but I think I’m ready to go home.”

Rich nodded and rubbed Michael's arm affectionately. “Of course, we'll get out of here in just a minute. Wait here while I track down Jake and let him know we're leaving?” He gave Michael a tight-lipped smile.

Michael shook his head, shifting his weight as he looked at the door, “It’s fine; I’ve been in here long enough. I’ll go with you to say goodbye to Jake.”

“You sure you want to? I can just come back in a minute so you don't have to deal with the crowd.” Rich tried not to let his concern show through or his anger. He was going to make the other Omega regret touching Michael.

Michael nodded, “The sooner we find Jake, the sooner we can leave and I’m the only one here who can actually see over the crowd.”

Rich gave Michael a mock-glare, “I'm going to let that slide this time. Don't think I won't get revenge in the future.” He smiled and unlocked the door, reaching out to take Michael's hand so he wouldn't lose the Alpha. They didn't need a repeat of what happened earlier. It took them several minutes, weaving through the crowd of people looking for the tall Alpha who was hosting the party. Rich kept glancing back at Michael to make sure he was alright before continuing on.

“Hey hot stuff, I see you found your friend,” the other Omega said, wrapping an arm around Michael's waist. “You ran off before the fun could really get started. What do you say we take this somewhere private?”

Rich quickly spun around at the sound of the Omega's voice. He shoved the Omega's arm off of Michael. “He's not interested. Go torment someone else.”

The Omega rolled his eyes at Rich, “Maybe you should let him tell me that himself. He wasn’t complaining about me getting my hands on him earlier, and let me tell you, he really is gifted.” His eyes roamed over the Alpha for a second before fixating just below his hips.

Rich started shaking. “Oh, fuck no!” He lunged forward, tackling the Omega to the ground, landing a solid punch directly to his nose before the other fist swept in to connect with his jaw. Rich was blinded by the rage, ready to murder the person that had groped his Alpha.

Michael’s eyes widened, struggling to figure out what to do. He bit his lip, taking a step forward and trying to grab onto Rich, trying to end the fight before it was too late. When he’d failed dragging him away a couple times, he sighed, knowing he didn’t have another option. “Rich, stop,” he ordered, the Alpha in him echoing through the room and driving the Omegas to stop.

Rich froze as he heard Michael's voice, his body stopping of its own volition. His blood ran cold at the sudden lack of adrenaline coursing through his body. He took a few deep breaths and looked down at the other Omega before glaring and getting up, adjusting his shirt that had twisted around in the attack. He moved to stand in front of Michael, still determined to keep the other Omega away.

Michael stepped forward, placing a hand on Rich’s shoulder to reassure him, before staring down at the bloody Omega. “There’s this thing called consent. Next time you make a move on someone, make sure you have it.” He turned his head, glancing at Rich, “Now, I think we had a jock to find?”

Rich nodded, clearing his throat, “Yeah, let's go.” He took Michael's hand and started weaving through the crowd. It didn't take long before they found Jake, informing him that they were leaving and explaining the situation before making their way out of the party. Once they were outside in the cold air, Rich sighed. “Are you okay?”

Michael paused, thinking for a moment before nodding. “I’m better. Confronting him helped, I think.”

Rich gave Michael a small smile. “Good, sorry I lost it. I didn't really think I could do that,” he said as he took a shaky breath.

“I should probably thank you for sticking up for me,” Michael replied after a moment. “There’s not a lot of people who would’ve. Just- I dunno, don’t almost kill the person next time, yeah?” Michael teased, trying to alleviate some of the tension.

Rich swallowed hard and nodded, giving a halfhearted chuckle, “Yeah, I'll-uh… I'll try not to.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, avoiding looking at Michael.

Michael stopped walking, turning to look at Rich, “Hey, I was just joking. You get that, right?”

“I know, it's fine. I'll try to be careful next time.” He watched where he was walking, not looking Michael in the eye, hand fidgeting with his key in his pocket to distract himself ineffectively.

Michael remained motionless, eyebrows furrowed as he studied Rich, “There’s something wrong,” he said. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”

Rich stopped and looked up at the dark sky. “It's fine Michael. Don't worry about it.”

Michael shook his head, “No, it’s not. Rich, if there’s something bothering you then I want to help.”

Rich sighed, “There's nothing you can do, Michael. There's nothing anyone can do except me, and I just proved to myself that I am exactly what I didn't want to be.” He took a deep breath and stared up at the sky again to keep from letting his eyes well up.

“This is about your dad,” Michael said quietly, taking a few steps closer to Rich. “You’re nothing like him, Rich. I can prove it to you if I have to.”

Rich forced himself to look at Michael. “I just beat someone senseless, Michael. I was angry enough that I couldn't stop myself. I didn't even think about it before I had tackled the guy and started swinging. Tell me how blind rage doesn't make me exactly like him!”

Michael sighed, striding closer so he was standing directly in front of Rich, “You’re not like him because you had a reason. You were protecting me, Rich, and whether you realize just how grateful I am or not, I am incredibly thankful that you did. You keep saving me; from that guy twice, from that Beta flirting with me at the theater, and even from Jeremy while we were playing war. Sure, it got a little out of hand tonight, but you helped me get out of what could’ve become a really bad situation.” He sighed, “Rich, you’re kind and sweet and nothing you’ve ever done around me has made me suspect, even for a second, that you’re a bad guy.” He pulled Rich’s hands out of his pockets, bringing them up and wrapping them loosely around his own neck before releasing them. “Do your worst. You think you’re like your dad? Prove it.”

Rich stared up at Michael as he spoke, feeling himself shaking more and more by the minute. His eyes welled with tears as Michael placed the Omega's hands on his neck. Rich didn't remove his hands. Instead, his arms slid around Michael's neck as he stepped forward and buried his face in Michael's shoulder. “I'm sorry.” He was still shaking, but it was more out of relief than fear now.

Michael slipped his arms around Rich’s waist, tugging him into a tight hug and resting his chin on top of Rich’s head, “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for, love,” he reassured him, “Tonight’s just been kind of a shitty night for everyone, hasn’t it?”

Rich nodded into Michael's shoulder. After a moment he pulled away, taking a deep breath and scrubbing his face with his hands to hide his tears and blotchy face. “We should probably get home before your moms start wondering where we are.”

Michael nodded slowly, his arms dropping as Rich stepped away but making no move to start walking. “You don’t have to be afraid of yourself, Rich. I would literally trust you with my life.”

Rich pursed his lips for a moment before giving Michael a small smile. “Thanks, I trust you with mine too.” Hesitantly, he reached over to take Michael's hand. “Thanks for talking me down too.”

Michael grinned softly, lacing their fingers together and starting to walk back towards where they’d left the car. “Anything for you.”


	17. Holiday Parties

The past few weeks had been stressful for everyone; between trying to forget the events of Jake’s Halloween party and cramming for finals, no one had really had time to hang out recently. Michael had even been struggling to find time to hang out with Rich and they lived together. That was probably why he’d been so excited for the Holiday party that Jake had planned for the self-proclaimed S.Q.U.I.P. squad to celebrate the start of the holiday season and the end of Final Exams. He’d reassured both Rich and Michael that it would only be their close friends, so they didn’t have to worry about another run-in with the Omega that’d given them trouble on Halloween.

The party had gone well so far, Michael had to admit to himself, even as he slipped away into the kitchen while everyone else remained in the living room singing holiday karaoke. He sighed as he mixed himself a mug of hot chocolate, staring out the window at the falling snow as he sipped at it. He glanced curiously over his shoulder as he heard the swinging door open and close. He shot Jake a small smile before returning his gaze to the world outside.

Jake smiled at Michael and leaned on the counter. He swiped a cookie off one of the plates of treats and took a bite as he thought about how to approach the conversation. “So, what's going on between you and Rich?”

“Nothing,” Michael replied evenly, trying not to give any indication that he  _ wanted _ something to be going on between the two of them.

Jake raised an eyebrow, “Really? That's not what I heard.” He took another bite of his cookie.

Michael looked at him curiously, “Yeah? What have you heard then?” He tried not to sound invested in what Jake was saying, but he couldn’t deny that he wanted to know if Rich had said anything.

“Maybe Rich hasn't had a chance to talk to you yet. I probably shouldn't say anything.” He smiled and moved to get a drink for himself.

Michael shrugged, taking a small sip of his drink and going back to staring out the window as he pretended not to care about what Jake had to say. “Probably not then.”

Jake raised an eyebrow. There was no way the other teen was as disinterested as he was acting. “Yeah, Rich should probably tell you. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise.”

“That’d be awful, wouldn’t it?” Michael asked, shifting to grab a cookie from the plate that Jake had commandeered earlier.

Jake eyed Michael, “You really want to know, don't you?” He sipped at his drink, staring Michael down.

“You really _want_ me to know, don’t you?” Michael replied evenly, raising an eyebrow challengingly as he took a bite of his cookie.

“Mostly I just want to know what you think about the whole situation.” He set his drink down, staring at Michael across the kitchen island.

Michael chuckled, “You’re definitely talking about something I know nothing about then. What situation?” he asked, turning to look back out the window.

Jake smirked, “Just Rich wanting you to stay for his next heat.” He picked up his cup to sip at again.

Michael tensed, hoping it wasn’t obvious how nervous the topic made him, “He didn’t mean it when he asked. The hormones already had him out of his mind; he wasn’t thinking straight.”

“He seemed pretty sane to me last week when he texted me about it. You sure he wasn't thinking straight?” Jake raised an eyebrow at Michael.

Michael fought the urge to turn and look at him, “That- I-” His brows furrowed as he tried to figure out what to say, “He just wants an Alpha with him and I’m the easiest choice since I already live in the same house.”

Jake's brows furrowed, “Michael, he doesn't want just any Alpha. If he wanted just anyone, he could easily ask to come stay with me and I'd help him. He wants to be with you.”

Michael huffed, turning to face Jake, “You realize how bad of an idea that is, right? I could seriously hurt him if I lost control.”

Jake rolled his eyes, “Do you really think you're going to hurt him? Rich trusts you. If he felt like he wouldn't be safe, he wouldn't ask.”

“Jake, you don’t get it; I’m not exactly your ordinary Alpha.” He shook his head wearily, “Normal rules don’t apply to me. So, yeah, I’m terrified that I’d do something both of us would regret or he’d change his mind and I wouldn’t be able to stop myself.”

Jake shook his head, “Dude, he's not going to change his mind. You are the only thing he's talked about since he presented, and even before that he had a thing for you. Trust me. He won't change his mind.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “I don't know what you mean by not your ordinary Alpha, but it can't be that bad.”

Michael sighed, tipping his head towards the door to the backyard, “I can’t show you in here. Rich would get concerned.” Michael turned and made his way outside.

Jake raised an eyebrow again, “Okay?” he followed Michael out the back door, closing it behind him, “What do you have to show me?”

“Just- don’t freak out, okay?” Michael sighed, closing his eyes and letting his concentration drop. His scent flooded outward at full strength for the first time since the Dustin Incident.

Jake was hit with Michael's full scent, feeling his knees shake under the intense power behind it. “Shit, Michael, Rich never told me about that.”

Michael huffed, eyes blinking open as he muffled his scent once again, “Now do you understand why I’m a little concerned about losing control?”

Jake shook his head to clear it, “Damn, yeah, I get it. I'm still on Rich's side though. Alpha's aren't just going to hurt an Omega if they actually care about them. Sure, you’re a strong as fuck Alpha, but you're not going to hurt him if you care about him, Michael.”

Michael sighed, turning his back on Jake and sitting on the edge of one of the steps, “No, I wouldn’t hurt him. Not intentionally, at least. But what if that’s not what I’m afraid of?”

“What are you afraid of? You won't hurt him. He likes you. What more is there to worry about?” Jake chuckled, “Sounds to me like you two have the perfect set up.”

Michael shook his head slowly, staring down at his hands, “Jake, I’m scared that I’d Mark him. That my control would slip for a split second and it’d be too late and then he’d hate me. Sure, it’s not physically hurting him, but taking away his freedom like that? That would kill him."

Jake sighed, “Look, all I can say is, if Rich likes you as much as I think he does, I'm pretty sure the last thing he would do is hate you for that. Honestly, he'd probably let you do it anyway, fully sane and not in heat. Just-” He pursed his lips and shrugged, “Just take that into consideration.”

Michael sighed, leaning back and looking up at the sky thoughtfully. “Jake, I hate to ask this of you, especially after all of that, but-” He forced himself to continue, “My moms are going out of the country just after Christmas to visit family and I’ll be...unavailable. Could Rich come stay with you while I’m out of commission?”

Jake ran a hand through his hair, understanding the subtext, “Yeah, that's fine. He can stay with me, but I'm not the one you'll have to convince. Rich is going to be hard pressed to leave you alone.”

“Which is why I’m not going to tell him what’s going on,” Michael replied quietly, “He’d be much easier to convince if he doesn’t think either of us will be there.”

“I'm not going to lie to him for you. If he asks, I'm going to tell him the truth, so if you want that to be the story, you'll have to have him fully convinced before he comes over.” Jake crossed his arms over his chest, giving Michael a serious look.

Michael nodded, “I’d never ask you to lie for me, Jake. I just need to make sure he isn’t around while I’m… like that.” He sighed, getting to his feet and shooting Jake a soft grin, “Thank you. For everything.”


	18. Get Out

“You’re sure the two of you will be alright while we’re gone?” Michael’s mom fretted, running her fingers through Rich’s hair fondly.

“Yes, we’ve made arrangements,” Michael replied, sighing as his mother straightened his hoodie, “Mom, it’s fine; it’ll just get wrinkled again anyway.”

His mother rolled her eyes at him, swatting his hands away as she tugged at the fabric again, “That’s good,” she responded, shooting a glance at her wife. “You two keep out of trouble, okay?”

“How much trouble can we really get into?” Rich grinned, “It’s not like either of us are even going to be here once you leave.”

Michael’s mom shot him a confused glance and Michael was quick to interrupt, “Once you both leave for the airport, I’m going to run Rich to Jake’s house. I’m not feeling super well, so I’ll probably wait a while before I head over to Jer’s.”

She nodded, understanding the hidden meaning under her son’s words and sharing a look with her wife. “Right, well, we should really get going. It’s already going to be a long flight and it’ll be even longer if we miss it.” She pressed a kiss to Michael’s temple and ran her fingers through Rich’s hair again, “Both of you take care of yourselves while we’re gone.”

Michael’s mother nodded, stepping back and picking up their suitcases, “We’ll tell the rest of the family that you said hello, Michael. And we’ll tell them you’re sorry that you couldn’t come to the reunion this year.” Both of the women said their goodbyes to the boys before slipping out the door to the waiting taxi.

Michael waited until he couldn’t see the car anymore before turning to face Rich with a forced smile, “We should probably get going too; Jake will be worried if we take much longer.”

Rich smiled, “Yeah, I’ll be back in a sec. Just let me grab my suitcase.” The Omega bolted up the stairs, taking them two at a time before appearing moments later with his bag in hand. “You sure you’re feeling up to driving? I’m sure Jake could come and get me if you just want to rest.”

Michael nodded, “I’ll be fine. I’ll probably just come back here and take a nap once I drop you off. I’m sure it’s just all the holiday excitement getting to me and I’ll be better after I get some sleep.” He gave Rich a forced grin, holding the door open for him.

“If you’re positive. Just take it easy, okay? No Nerf wars while I’m gone,” he teased as he walked out, throwing his suitcase into the back seat of the Cruiser.

Michael chuckled, “Of course not; who’d be my competition,  _ Jeremy _ ?” He laughed again, hoping he’d be able to distract Rich from asking questions about his plans for the rest of the week. “You make War, like, twice as fun.”

Rich laughed, “Well, good to know. At least I won’t miss out on that. You’ll have to let me know if you and Jeremy beat level twelve of Apocalypse.” He sighed, unsure how to feel. “It’s going to be really weird not having you around for the next little while. I guess I’m too used to bothering you all the time,” he joked.

Michael bit his lip, climbing into the driver’s seat and immediately rolling down the windows, hoping Rich wouldn’t notice how much stronger his scent was than normal. “I’m sure we won’t beat it,” he started, knowing that there was no chance of them beating, or even attempting, a level since he wasn’t going over to Jeremy’s at all. “You never bother me, Rich; I love having you around.”

“Good, because you’re stuck with me, maybe not for the next few days, but you will be again when we get back.” Rich climbed in and buckled up, giving Michael a funny look as he rolled down the windows. “Something wrong?”

He shrugged, backing the car out of the driveway, “Just thought some fresh air might make me feel better, I guess.”

Rich nodded, “Oh, alright.” He watched Michael out of the corner of his eye suspiciously, not really buying that excuse but choosing not to push the subject. “If you and Jeremy get bored, just text me. I’m sure Jake would love some extra company.”

Michael nodded, keeping his eyes on the road so he wouldn’t have to look at Rich. “We’ll have to see what Mr. Heere says.”

Rich pursed his lips, “I don’t think he’ll say no to you two not being cooped up in the house for a few hours.”

Michael shrugged, “Guess we’ll have to see. He’s not usually bad about stuff like that, but he’s been trying to be more involved with Jer’s life recently, so who can say for sure?” He was incredibly thankful that they’d just turned onto Jake’s street since he could tell Rich was beginning to question his story.

“I guess we’ll see.” He looked up as Jake’s house came into view. “I’ll text you later, keep you updated on all of the mischief we get ourselves into.” He swallowed hard but forced a smile as he hopped out of the car and grabbed his suitcase, “Have fun hanging out with Jer.”

Michael leaned his head out the window, intending on replying with a similar comment. “What, no goodbye kiss?” Michael’s eyes widened, surprised by the flirtiness of his own words. He shook his head, “Sorry, just joking around.”

Rich stopped for a second, taken aback by what Michael had said. His face flushed, giving a nervous chuckle, “Really funny. I’ll chat with you later.” He quickly turned and retreated toward Jake’s front door.

Michael shook his head, disappointed with himself for letting his words get ahead of him, “Good going, Mell,” he grumbled, throwing the car in reverse and heading back to the house. He made a mental checklist as he drove, figuring out what to stock the basement with for his self-inflicted imprisonment.

* * *

  
  


Rich sighed, sending his fifteenth text to Michael since the previous night. He figured maybe Michael and Jeremy had just gotten caught up in a game or something, but by the next morning he should have texted him back. Caving, he dialed Jeremy’s number. “Hey, Jer, did Michael let his phone die or something? He isn’t answering my texts.”

“I have no idea,” Jeremy replied, his confusion evident. “Rich, you’d know before I would; I haven’t heard from him since the holiday party.”

“Wait, what? He was supposed to be staying with you this week while his moms are gone,” Rich’s brows furrowed as he stood up, heading for the door to grab his shoes.

“No he wasn’t,” Jeremy said, trying to think, “Shit. It’s the reunion this week, isn’t it? The only reason he’d miss it is-” Jeremy cut himself off, “Rich, you can’t go back to the house. I know this seems shady, but I promise Michael has a good reason for it.”

“Like hell I’m not. I swear I’m going to rip Michael a new one after this.” Rich pulled his shoes on and went up to the guest room to grab his bag. “I can’t stay here right now either. I forgot my suppressants and I’m at Jake’s. If I don’t go back for them, it’s not going to be good.”

Jeremy sighed, clearly frustrated, “No, Rich, you don’t get it. Look, just stay there. We have the same prescription, right? I’ll just bring some of mine over or go get you some more or something. Just don’t go home.”

Rich huffed, “That’s not how prescriptions work, Jeremy, and we’re on different things anyway. I don’t have much of a choice. I’ll call you later.” He hung up the call and pocketed his phone. “Jake, I need a ride home.”

Jake wandered into the room, having eavesdropped on Rich’s end of the conversation. “You sure you want to do that?”

Rich rolled his eyes, “Not you too. Yes, now let’s go.”

“You do realize what’s going on, right?” Jake asked, slipping his own shoes on.

“No, because everyone is beating around the bush!” Rich yelled in frustration.

Jake smirked, “Michael’s in rut. That’s what Jeremy was probably trying to tell you.”

Rich paused, staring at Jake for a minute, “Wait, what?”

“Yeah, do you really think going over there is a good idea?” Jake smiled, “He just wants to make sure you’re safe. That’s why he wanted you to come stay with me.”

“Wait a second, you  _ knew _ what was going on?” Rich asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Jake bit his lip, “Yes, Michael asked me about it at the party, and I wasn’t supposed to tell you, but I also said I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“You’re a son of a bitch. You know that?” Rich headed for the door, turning his back on Jake.

The Alpha quickly moved to get in front of Rich. “Yeah, I get that, but here’s the thing. Now, you know what’s going on, so you have to make the decision. You can go back over there where Michael is in rut and could possibly jump you when you walk through the door, or you can stay here and stick it out a few more days where you’ll be safe.”

Rich pursed his lips, thinking over the options. Yes, Michael just wanted him to be safe, and he could understand that, didn’t mean he had to like it. Michael had stayed when Rich had gone through heat, if only to take care of him and make sure he wasn’t alone. He looked Jake dead in the eye, “I’m going home, even if I have to walk.”

Jake sighed and pursed his lips. “Can’t say I didn’t try.” He grabbed his keys and waved toward the door. “Let’s go.”

Rich ran out to Jake’s car and quickly climbed in, waiting impatiently for the Alpha to get in. Once they were on the road Rich finally spoke, “Sorry, I know Michael wanted you to keep me out of the house, but I’m not just going to leave him alone.”

Jake shrugged, “I told him I wouldn’t lie to you. As much as I’d like to stop you, I knew you’d go as soon as you found out.”

“Still, Michael can’t get mad at you for not stopping me. I did make the choice, and you did try to convince me not to go,” Rich picked up his phone again, looking to see if Michael had responded yet, but knowing he wouldn’t.

“Well, he should have told you the truth to begin with, so he really can’t blame me.” Jake turned into Michael’s neighborhood. “Just be careful, okay? Michael might have been able to control himself during your heat, but that doesn’t mean he has control of himself now.”

Rich swallowed hard, “Okay, I’ll be careful. I’ll keep you updated, and I’ll keep my phone close in case I need help.”

Jake smiled, “Alright, but if you don’t text me within an hour, I’m coming back.”

Rich returned a small smile, “So text you before I do anything stupid, got it.” He took a deep breath as Jake pulled up to the curb. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll probably call you tonight if I get a chance.” With that they said their goodbyes and Rich started up the front steps, hesitating slightly with his keys before forcing himself to unlock the door. He waved to Jake as he turned the handle, watching the Alpha leave. He took a deep breath and stepped in, closing the door behind him. He let the breath out when he wasn’t immediately tackled. When he finally inhaled, his knees buckled under him at the full force of Michael’s scent circulating through the house. He hit the floor with a loud thump, blinking and shaking his head to try and calm himself down. It took a couple of minutes before he could get to his feet, slowly making his way into the kitchen first. He noticed Michael’s phone on the counter and picked it up. Silenced. “This explains a lot,” he mumbled to himself.

* * *

  
  


Michael lifted his head as he heard a car pull in, but he disregarded it, figuring it was just the mailman or something. His gaze darted back towards the door when he heard the lock to the front door click open.  _ Definitely not the mailman _ , he huffed, getting to his feet and creeping toward the bottom of the staircase.  _ There’s only two other people in this whole goddamn city with a key to that door, and Jeremy has enough common sense to know not to come over. _ He sighed silently as he picked up Rich’s scent and forced himself to ignore how happy he was to know he was nearby. He huffed, silently making his way up the stairs to the landing at the top, crossing his arms over his chest as he listened to Rich making his way around the living room.

  
  


Rich glanced over at the basement door and stepped up to it, listening to see if Michael was alright. “Michael? You okay?”

Michael rolled his eyes, lunging forward to slam his palms against the door, hoping it’d be able to scare Rich off. “Rich, I fucking swear, if you don’t call Jake back  _ right the fuck now _ and go back-” he growled, not bothering to finish his threat.

Rich jumped and screeched as Michael hit the door. It took a couple seconds for him to gather his thoughts before pursing his lips and slamming his hands on the door as well. “No, I’m not going to leave you here by yourself.”

“Rich,” Michael huffed, unfazed by the door shaking, “You need to leave. Now. Go call Jake.”

“I said I’m not leaving. I’m staying, and that’s final. You aren’t going to change my mind.” Rich grit his teeth, determined not to move a single step away from the door.

Michael rolled his eyes again, pressing closer to the door as a frustrated snarl took over his features. His tone lowered as his Alpha voice took over, “Rich,  _ go call Jake _ .”

Rich smirked and pulled out his phone, “Fine.” It rang a couple of times before Jake picked up. “Hey Jake, you told me to call within the hour, but Michael wanted me to call now.” He took a deep breath before rushing to say, “Everythingisfine. Callyoulater. Bye!” He hung up and quickly went through his contacts, deleting both Jake’s and Jeremy’s, just in case. “There, I called him. Happy now?” He quickly pulled out Michael’s phone and did the same. Now there was no way to text or call either of them.

Michael growled lowly, “Fucking hell, Rich.” He shook his head, turning to make his way back down the stairs, “You still need to leave,” he called over his shoulder. He stalked back to his beanbag, flopping down and picking up his previously abandoned controller. He pressed play on his level of AoTD, hoping to force himself to forget Rich was there by blasting the game loudly.

“I’m not going anywhere, Michael. You can’t just ignore me all week. Eventually, we’re going to have to talk.” He huffed before wandering off to gather his supplies. He came back about fifteen minutes later with an armload of blankets and pillows, dropping them on the floor. He then moved to the living room to steal the cushions off the couch. He adjusted them on the floor to make a temporary bed, figuring he probably wouldn’t be leaving until Michael’s rut was over.

Michael huffed as he heard Rich settling down on the other side of the basement door and turned his game up louder, hoping he’d be able to drown out the sound of the Omega at the top of the stairs. “Go away!” He yelled over the sound of the game’s soundtrack.

Rich rolled his eyes when Michael hollered back up the stairs. “Not going to happen!” he yelled back, settling down on the cushions and picking up his phone to entertain himself.

* * *

  
  


A couple of hours later, Rich realized he hadn’t heard anything for a while, wondering if Michael had actually forgotten he was there. “Michael, will you talk to me, please?”

Michael tensed as he heard Rich’s voice, but his only response was to turn up the volume on the TV.

Rich huffed, “You can’t just ignore me forever! You’ll have to talk to me sooner or later!” He went back to playing on his phone, refusing to move an inch if he didn’t have to.

Michael rolled his eyes, starting yet another level to keep himself from thinking about Rich and to distract himself from the urge to go back up the stairs to get closer to him.

* * *

  
  


A few more hours passed and the effects of Michael’s rut were beginning to get to him. Every time he died in his game, he’d get overly frustrated. He was able to notice himself getting more and more aggressive in the game, he was constantly hungry, and, worst of all, it felt like it was unbearably hot. He’d already taken off his hoodie before his rut really got into full swing, but by this point he’d also stripped off his sweats and his t-shirt, leaving him to rage at level thirteen of Apocalypse of the Damned in just his stupid Pac-Man boxers.

He let out a loud groan as his character died again and tossed aside his controller, figuring he should at least try to get some sleep while he could. He shut off the TV, leaving the basement eerily quiet, as he climbed into bed.

* * *

  
  


The longer Rich laid outside the basement door, the more aware of Michael he became. He could smell the Alpha's scent continuing to get stronger, and he could hear every frustrated growl as clearly as if he were sitting right beside him. He tried to clear his head by listening to music and watching videos, but he couldn't stop thinking of Michael. When all had gone quiet behind the door, he figured Michael had fallen asleep. He curled up on his pile of cushions and decided he should probably do the same.

* * *

As the morning sun streamed in the windows, Rich groaned and rolled over on his makeshift bed. He blinked and looked around, not sure where he was before remembering the previous day’s events. He sighed and looked around, something shining on the floor catching his eye. The Omega crawled over to pick up the key off the floor. “The fuck?” he mumbled to himself. He must have dropped his house key when Michael spooked him the day before. Not thinking much of it, he tucked it into his pocket, getting up to go change. His jeans were starting to get uncomfortable, probably because he slept in them.

* * *

  
  


Michael tossed and turned fitfully for a few hours before giving up on sleep. His rut had gone on just long enough to make him restless, but he hadn’t quite hit the point where he’d be so horny he couldn’t think straight. He shook his head wearily, slumping back into place on his beanbag and beginning yet another playthrough of Apocalypse of the Damned.

* * *

  
  


Rich came back down after slipping into a pair of baggy pajama pants. He could hear Michael’s game downstairs and rolled his eyes as he moved to the kitchen to make himself some food. He glanced at the counter and raised an eyebrow. His house key was laying on the counter. Rich picked up the key and made his way upstairs to retrieve the one he’d found on the floor. Comparing them, it was easy to see that they were different, so the new key couldn’t be someone’s house key. He meandered his way back down to the ground floor, studying the key the whole time, wracking his brain as he tried to think of what it belonged to. He picked up his toast on the way back to the basement door, sitting on his cushions again, staring at the key like it had come from outer space. His fingers traced the teeth for a while before he huffed and looked around, stumped as to what it could belong to. Rich’s eyes fell on the basement door. The  _ locked _ basement door. “Well, I’m an idiot,” he whispered to himself. Michael’s game was playing loudly downstairs, making this the perfect chance. He pushed the key into the lock and smiled as he gently turned it, careful not to make a sound. The Omega took careful, slow steps as he made his way down into the basement, watching the frustrated Alpha force his way through a level.

Michael snarled as a horde of zombies approached, oblivious to his surroundings as he battled his pixelated foes. He bit his lip as he killed a few of them, moving to use a health pack before realizing he was out. He tossed his controller aside as his character was devoured, “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” he grumbled, slumping back against the back of his beanbag and covering his eyes with his hands.

Rich knelt down behind the beanbag and slipped his arms around Michael’s waist, resting his chin on the Alpha’s shoulder.

Michael jolted, swearing loudly as he twisted away from the unexpected contact, slipping off the front of his seat in the process. He blinked up at Rich from his spot on the floor, eyes wide and confused for a moment before he realized what he was seeing, “Rich?! Dude, get out!”

Rich stared at Michael in shock for a moment before rolling his eyes, “Why? You stayed with me during my heat. It’ll be fine.”

Michael looked up at him blankly for a second before scoffing, “Rich, I hate to break it to you, but this isn’t the same situation.” He shook his head, forcing himself back to his feet.

Rich huffed, “What makes it so different?” He crossed his arms, staring Michael dead in the eye. “As far as I can tell, it’s pretty much the same, just reversed.”

“When you were in heat, the only thing you wanted was attention.” Michael retorted, returning Rich’s glare, “Alphas in rut are violent and aggressive; dangerous. Self-control isn’t really an option past the first couple of days.”

“No, Alphas are violent to other Alphas. Aggressive, yeah, but you aren’t going to hurt me, and you know that,” Rich argued.

“That was never what I was worried about,” Michael bit back. He sighed, turning away after the words left him, trying to signal that he was done talking about it.

“Then what are you afraid of?” Rich asked, grabbing Michael’s arm to turn him around.

Michael pulled away, wrenching his arm out of Rich’s hold, “I’m done talking about this, Rich. Get out.”

“No, I want to know! Give me a good reason to and I’ll leave, but I’m not going anywhere until you tell me!” Rich stepped in front of Michael so he couldn’t go anywhere.

Michael shook his head exasperatedly, “For fuck’s sake, Rich-” He inhaled sharply, ignoring the way Rich’s scent seemed to draw him closer, “I’m fucking terrified that I’ll lose control and hurt you. Okay? I am  _ petrified _ that I’m going to make some stupid fucking mistake and make you hate me and that would fucking kill me because I think I’m fucking falling in love with you and that alone terrifies me! I don’t know how to deal with any of that, so my best option is just to push you away so neither of us get hurt.” He lowered his eyes, jaw tensing as he forced himself to keep talking, “Is that good enough for you?” He shook his head again, pushing past Rich and heading towards the bathroom. “Whatever. I’m done.” He closed and locked the door behind him, sliding down the length of it until he was sitting with his back pressed against it and his knees pulled up to his chest. 

Rich blinked a few times as he watched Michael walk away. He silently turned around and walked back up the stairs, making sure the lock made an audible click. He sat on the cushions and pulled his knees up to his chest, trying to process everything Michael had said. All his brain kept coming back to was that Michael was falling in love with him. Michael Mell, the guy he'd had a crush on since he was fourteen, was falling for him, the Omega that came from a fucked up home and did stupid and reckless things just because he felt out of place. Rich's face burned as he flushed all the way down his chest. He pressed his palms to his face and gave a flustered whine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens and the porn approaches...


	19. Stay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it folks, this one's got porn.

Rich sighed as he fiddled with his blankets as his mind tried to wrap around everything that Michael had told him earlier. Michael was falling in love with him, and Rich didn’t know what to do. He loved him, he really did, but he didn’t know what to say. What was he supposed to do? Walk straight back down there and say ‘Hey, yeah, I love you too. Sorry I didn’t immediately tell you. I was just shocked that you’d actually be in love with me,’ because that  _ definitely _ couldn’t backfire somehow. Rich shook his head, trying to clear it to no avail. He kept rearranging the blankets and pillows around him before tearing the pile apart and starting over. He set the last blanket in position and pursed his lips. He just couldn’t stop messing with them. His eyes widened in realization; he was nesting, one of the first clear signs of his heat starting.

* * *

**  
  
**

Michael had spent nearly an hour hiding away in the bathroom, even after he heard Rich leave the basement and lock the door behind him. Eventually though, his stomach got the better of him and he ventured out to retrieve one of the sandwiches he’d made before locking himself in the basement. He huffed as he died again, this being the fifth time he’d attempted this level. It was official; he wasn’t going to be able to use video games to distract him from his rut anymore.

He let out a relieved sigh as he leaned back in his beanbag, head tipping back languidly as he dragged his fingernails along the skin of his hip before slipping one of his hands under the waistband of his boxers. He inhaled sharply as he wrapped his fingers around his length, pumping experimentally. He bit back a moan, slowly starting to move his hand faster, mind going blank as his hips jerked upward into his hand. He tightened his grip slightly, twisting his wrist on the upstroke and groaning softly as his fingers brushed against a particularly sensitive spot on the underside of his dick. Michael bit into his lower lip sharply as his hips jerked faster, fucking up into his fist as he forced himself over the edge with a low moan.

He sighed as he withdrew his now-messy hand from his boxers, rolling over and getting to his feet, making his way into the bathroom to clean up and idly hoping that Rich hadn’t heard him getting himself off.

* * *

**  
  
**

“Oh, fuck, he was totally getting himself off, wasn’t he?” Rich whimpered quietly, knowing Michael couldn't hear him. He whined and leaned his head against the door. He desperately wanted to go down there, but Michael didn't want him to. The last thing he wanted was to upset the Alpha more than he already had, but he wasn't going to last long with an Alpha that close, especially if he had to listen to Michael jerking off constantly.

**  
  
**

* * *

Four hours, thirteen minutes, and forty-seven seconds had passed since Rich realized he wouldn't last long. He'd held out longer than he thought, but Michael's last orgasm had been the last straw. The Omega couldn't stand being alone anymore. He climbed off the cushions and unlocked the door again, stumbling down the steps to the basement.

Michael jolted as the door swung open and he scrambled to find something to cover himself with. “Dude!” he exclaimed as his eyes met Rich’s, “What the hell? Get out!”

Rich huffed as he made it to the bottom of the stairs, “What’s the point? You’re in rut and I’m in heat. We might as well give in before one of us breaks that door down.”

Michael blinked, “You’re in- shit. Shit, this isn’t good.” He leaned back, pressing his hands over his eyes, “Rich, you need to leave. Before I start smelling you and actually lose my mind.”

“And then what? Wait until I can’t stand it anymore and bolt down here when I can’t control myself anymore? I already can’t convince myself to go up to my room, and laying outside of that door just means not only can I smell you, but I can hear you up there.” Rich gripped his hair with a frustrated whine, pacing back and forth by the stairs.

Michael rolled his eyes, slumping back against the back of his beanbag, “Wow, great to know that this was something you  _ actually _ wanted and not just something you saw as inevitable,” he grinned bitterly, hands dropping from in front of his eyes to rest on the abandoned t-shirt covering his lap. He huffed, closing his eyes as he tipped his head back, “This is why you should’ve just fucking stayed at Jake’s.”

Rich growled, “I came back because I was worried about you, because I care about you, Michael. I didn't want you to have to suffer alone. And I never said I didn't want this. Actually, I've wanted this for a really long time, but you hadn't seemed interested.” He rubbed the back of his neck, face flushing.

“I don’t need pitied, Rich,” Michael sighed, “I’ve gone through this alone plenty of times in the past and doing it again wouldn’t be any different. Just because I told you that I have feelings for you doesn’t mean you owe me anything; you don’t have to stay with me just because you feel bad for me.” His jaw clenched as Rich’s scent started to get to him, forcing himself to ignore it and keep his attention on the situation at hand.

“I'm not pitying you, Michael! I want to be here! If I wanted to be with just anyone, I would have stayed at Jake's, but I didn't. I wanted to be with you. I wanted to help you, take care of you.” Rich groaned and took a couple steps closer, not realizing it. “Dammit, Michael! I have been head-over-heels for you since my S.Q.U.I.P. shut off, and I can't stop thinking about you, and all I want… is you.”

Michael blinked, trying to process what Rich had just said, “I- This is a bad idea.” His brows furrowed and he shook his head, he chuckled softly, sitting up and meeting Rich’s eyes, “God, this is a terrible idea, but I-  _ fuck _ , I want you too.”

Rich felt a lump in his throat, waiting for Michael to speak. The Omega bit his lip, “So, you're not going to kick me out again?” He tried not to smile, slowly taking another step towards Michael.

Michael shook his head slowly, still warring with himself internally about all the reasons letting Rich stay was an awful idea. “No,” he mumbled softly, “But if you have even a fraction of a doubt, you should leave before it’s too late.”

Rich smiled and shook his head, “Not a chance. I'm staying.” He walked over to the Alpha, leaning over to place a gentle kiss on Michael's lips. After a few seconds, Rich pulled away. “Damn I've wanted to do that for a long time.”

Michael chuckled softly, grinning as he looked up at Rich, “You should’ve done it sooner then,” he teased. He sighed contentedly as he leaned back in his seat, finally allowing himself to enjoy the way Rich’s scent washed over him. He could pick out something sweet-smelling, like the sugary cereals that he insisted on eating, something kind of spicy, like cinnamon or something of the sort, along with a hint of the cologne he always wore. It was kind of a unique combination, but it was so wholly  _ Rich _ that Michael couldn’t help but smile.

Rich rolled his eyes, “Yeah, yeah, hindsight and all that shit.” He knelt down beside the beanbag and cupped the back of Michael's neck, pulling him closer and into another kiss, this one deeper than the first.

Michael grinned into the kiss, shifting slightly so he could lean closer to Rich, pressing his lips harder against the Omega’s and letting one of his hands settle on his hip, the other supporting him so he could get a better angle. He nipped playfully at Rich’s lower lip, tongue flicking out to soothe the sting of the bite.

Rich whined as Michael bit his lip, his hand leaving the Alpha's neck to tangle in his hair instead. Without thinking, the Omega climbed into Michael's lap, their lips never parting. Both of Rich's arms wrapped around Michael's neck, pulling them closer to one another.

Michael inhaled sharply, gasping into the kiss as Rich settled himself on his lap. He shifted under him, laying back against the cushion of his beanbag and tugging Rich down with him, the arm that had been supporting him moving to rest at his waist, his fingertips slipping up under the hem of his shirt to brush lightly at the skin of his hip.

Rich sighed as they laid down. His skin prickled under Michael's touch, his own fingertips moving to trace along the Alpha's shoulders and collarbones and squirming closer to him, kissing back ferociously.

Michael pulled away after a moment, pressing slow lingering kisses along Rich’s jaw and down the side of his throat, though he was still taking care to avoid the juncture where his neck met his shoulder; the spot where Rich’s mate would mark him some day. His grip on Rich’s hips tightened as he bit and sucked at Rich’s neck, leaving a mess of darkly-colored hickeys in his wake.

Rich's eyes fluttered, the Alpha lighting up sensitive nerves that hadn't been teased since before he presented. He couldn't even process that the groaning he was hearing was coming from his own throat. Reluctantly, the Omega pushed gently against Michael's chest, distancing himself just enough to remove his shirt and throw it somewhere before settling back down, kissing Michael's lips before moving to his jaw nipping at the skin up to where it met his neck sucking and biting at the skin there, intending to leave a dark mark behind.

Michael let out a pleased rumble at the sensation, his grip tightening on Rich's hips for an instant before slipping up his sides and back reverently. He leaned back slightly, just enough so he could look at Rich. He grinned fondly, unable to deny the tight feeling in his chest as he stared up at the Omega perched on his lap.

Rich pouted for a moment as Michael pulled away. He couldn't help but get a little nervous at first, thinking maybe he'd done something wrong. The little grin sent his heart fluttering, beating faster than it already was. He couldn't help but chuckle at the quick change of mood, "What? What are you looking at?"

"Nothing," Michael murmured, slipping his arms around Rich to pull him closer. He rested his chin on the Omega's shoulder, "Just love you, is all."

Rich couldn't help but smile, his heart trying to jump from his chest. He nuzzled into the Alpha's neck and whined quietly. "I love you too, Michael." 

Michael turned his head slightly so he could press an affectionate kiss to the side of Rich's head. He shifted slightly, the movement bringing his attention to a more pressing concern than the alarmingly quick thump of his heart as he cuddled the Omega in his lap. "Uh, Rich?"

"Mhmm?" the Omega hummed against his Alpha's neck. Rich's left hand lazily traced shapes along Michael's collarbone. "What, Michael?"

Michael shifted again, absentmindedly hoping that Rich hadn't noticed his 'excitement.' "Rich, I'm naked," he pointed out.

Rich chuckled and sat back, "Really? I hadn't noticed. I thought you had a game controller in your pocket." He rolled his eyes and lifted himself up slightly, maneuvering so he could yank the shirt that Michael had used to cover himself out from between them, tossing it to the side. "Much better."

Michael jerked in surprise, hands instinctively moving to cover himself. "Dude, what the fuck?" He asked, stunned by Rich's forwardness.

Rich sighed and shifted back to sit on the floor. "Michael, isn't this kind of the whole point? We're like a bad RomCom here, man! You confess, I panic, I burst down here and confess, things get sappy and heated, then we fuck. Isn't that how this shit is supposed to go?" he joked, hoping it would calm Michael down a bit.

Michael lowered his eyes guiltily, "It's my fault that it's taken so long," he started, still keeping his hands firmly planted over his lap. "I just- At first I was afraid I would hurt you, then once I'd accepted that it wasn't a big risk I started thinking and what if I'm-" he sighed, forcing himself to continue, "What if I'm not enough for you?"

Rich pursed his lips as he listened to the Alpha speak. He gently rested a hand on the other's knee and smiled up at him. "If you're talking about sex, it doesn't matter. That can be figured out," he said with a chuckle. His eyes then turned serious, focusing on Michael's own. "If you're talking about everything else, then you have never needed to worry about that. Michael, you're incredible and I've never wanted to be with someone more than I want to be with you. Okay?" He squeezed Michael's knee and gave him a bright smile, "Take a deep breath, and tell your anxiety to go on vacation for a few days, because you deserve a break."

"I just-" Michael sighed softly, finally lifting his gaze to meet Rich's, "I just want this," he gestured between the two of them with one hand, shifting the other to still maintain his modesty, "to be good for you and I don't know how to do that." He shook his head slowly, biting his lip as he recognized the genuinely loving way that Rich was looking at him. "I don't think that I can just turn off my anxiety, but I love you enough to set it aside until we're both back to normal," Michael promised with a small grin. Slowly, he lifted his hand from his lap and brought it up to rest on the back of Rich's neck, pulling him forward into a heated kiss.

Rich smiled against Michael's lips and wrapped an arm around the Alpha's neck. He sat up on his knees, one hand resting on Michael's thigh. He pulled back just a tiny bit and chuckled, "If you fuck even half as well as you kiss, I think everything will be just fine." He pressed his lips to Michael's again, reaching down to loosen the tie on his own pajama pants.

Michael grinned into the kiss, shifting his hold down to Rich's hips before surging forward, using his momentum to get up from the beanbag and lift Rich up with him. He picked Rich up, letting out a sharp breath when the movement ground their erections against each other through the thin material of Rich's pants. He started moving, quickly making his way across the room and only breaking the kiss when he had to pause to gently drop Rich onto his bed. He chuckled softly at the stunned expression on Rich's face.

Rich squeaked and gasped as he was lifted, both arms wrapping tightly around the back of the Alpha's neck to keep from falling. He bounced against the mattress, momentarily dazed by the sudden drop. The Omega quickly shook it off and reached out to pull Michael down, lips desperately pressing to his. He tangled the fingers of one of his hands into the dark waves of Michael’s hair to drag him closer, while his other quickly tugged at his pants and boxers, trying to struggle his way out of them. Once he was free, he tossed his clothes off the bed, not really giving a shit where they landed.

Michael let out a choked groan as their hips ground together again, this time without the cloth barrier to muffle the sensation. He pulled away from the kiss to continue mouthing along the side of Rich's neck the way he had been earlier, using one arm to support himself as he hovered over Rich while the other ghosted along the muscled planes of Rich's chest and abdomen until he could wrap his fingers around both of their dicks, giving a few torturously slow pumps before moving his hand to settle against his hip, drawing Rich closer so he could grind against him again.

Rich’s head tipped back against the pillows behind him and he let out a breathy gasp at the onslaught of sensations, breath hitching in his throat as Michael’s lips twitched upward into a grin against his collarbone at the sound.

The Alpha hummed against his skin, a pleasant buzz settling in his mind and washing away his earlier distress, leaving him with just his Omega’s pleasure to think about. 

He continued mapping out his mate's body, exploring freckles and fading burn scars with wandering fingers and lingering kisses. He leaned back after a moment, sitting back on his heels to admire his Omega, licking his lips as he noticed the way the light caught the drops of precum beading at the tip of Rich's cock.

He shot Rich a mischievous grin before ducking his head and licking slowly along the underside of his dick, kissing messily along its length as one hand slipped lower down his omega's body.

Rich sucked in a sharp breath as Michael took him into his mouth, sucking lightly at the head of his cock while the tip of one finger prodded lightly at his entrance, pressing into him barely to the first knuckle before disappearing again. He let out a choked whine, pressing his hips closer to the wayward digit, trying to urge Michael to move faster. 

"So impatient," Michael murmured against his skin, but he relented, pressing a finger fully into Rich. He let out an awed breath as he realized how much slick the omega must have produced for him to be this wet.

The omega let out a moan at the feeling, grinding his hips further against the feeling, trying to force Michael's fingers deeper into him. "Shit-  _ fuck _ \- yeah, so hurry it the hell up, babe," he whined, his heat making him needy.

Michael chuckled slightly at the omega's impatience, but he relented, pumping his finger in and out of the omega a little faster, pressing the tip of a second past the edge of his hole and teasing it slightly. Michael pulled away slightly at Rich's demands and he couldn't help but lick his lips at the thought of what was to come. His jaw clenched and his mouth watered as he watched the omega struggling to get pressure deeper inside of him. The alpha smirked a little as he suddenly added a third, wrenching a gasp out of his partner with a deft twist of his fingers.

He withdrew his fingers, watching the way Rich's slick clung to them with rapt eyes, "Fuck, you've got no idea what you do to me, do you?" Michael groaned, leaning over Rich so that their chests pressed against each other as he ground against him, breath catching in his throat as his dick brushed against his entrance. He repeated the motion a couple more times, the slow pace just as torturous to him as it seemed to be to his mate. "Hope you don't regret this later," he murmured, leaning forward to sink his teeth into Rich's shoulder and guiding himself forward to start to slowly sink into the omega. 

He froze as the sensations caught up to him, the tight, wet heat wrapping around his cock driving the very air from Michael's lungs and every thought from his mind. It was all he could do to remain still, teeth sunken into his omega's shoulder and hands clenching tightly to his hips, as he gave him time to adjust to the intrusion.

All of the air was knocked out of Rich's lungs as Michael finally pressed into him, a wave of warm satisfaction at the thought that he was claiming Michael as  _ his  _ alpha, just as much as Michael was claiming him. That he was Michael's first (and last, a small part of the omega's mind prompted hopefully), their joining making him feel like they were finally connected in every possible way.

"Move," Rich begged, head tipping back to rest against the pillow as his fingernails dug into Michael's shoulders.

Michael shuddered at the wrecked tone of his omega's voice, hips snapping forward of their own volition, forcing his cock deeper. He let out a pleased groan, pressing his grin against Rich's collarbone as his movements dragged a couple of stuttered moans from his partner.

Rich's eyes fluttered closed as Michael found his rhythm, hips slowly drawing back before  _ slamming _ back into him, his cock perfectly stretching him to just the right side of painful with each of his powerful thrusts. He let out a breathy gasp as Michael pressed in closer to him, pinning his dripping length between them with each grind of his hips and smearing his precum along both of their abdomens. If it bothered Michael he hid it well. In fact, it seemed more like it spurred him on further than anything.

He propped himself up on his elbows, the new angle allowing him to better aim for Rich's prostate, and placed his lips over the omega's mating gland, sucking hard at the sensitive skin. He shuddered a little, the sound of his cock driving in and out of Rich's sex-slicked hole coupled with the sensual expression on his omega's face making his dick harder than he could remember it ever being before. It was official; this omega had ruined him for sex with anyone else. Now he'd just have to return the favor. His hips snapped into the omega's harder just as his hand tightened around his cock and he trailed his teeth against the hickey he'd been leaving.

Rich’s fingernails raked down his mate’s back, attempting to anchor himself against the wake of his pleasure. His head tipped back against the pillows on Michael's bed, mouth dropping open in ecstasy as his alpha plowed into him, the force of his thrusts rocking his entire body and gradually shifting him further up the bed. His hips jerked and sputtered as he ground back against Michael's cock, his own twitching as he came, orgasm ripping a wrecked gasp from his lips and driving him to clutch Michael even closer to him.

Michael let out an answering grunt as the telltale wetness of his omega's cum splashed against his abdomen. He could feel his knot starting to form, the swelling at the base of his cock slowing the speed of his thrusts, he let out a frustrated groan, grinding forward harder.

"Oh, god," Rich gasped, as he felt Michael's knot pressed against his entrance. "F-fuck," he moaned, eyes rolling back, "knot me, please-  _ please _ ."

The alpha growled a little, forcing his knot past Rich's tight ring of muscle, locking them together. He bit into Rich's shoulder as his pleasure started to overwhelm him, drawing back slightly and then pressing in deeper, teeth digging in harder as his hips jerked, spilling his load into his mate. 

Rich gasped, cock twitching valiantly as Michael pumped him full, some strange part of him proud that he'd been bred by his alpha.

He blinked after a moment, forcing himself to relax his jaw and release his tight grip on Rich's shoulder. Michael shifted to lay beside Rich rather than on top of him, gently gathering the omega into his arms and curling up around him, careful not to put too much strain on the place where they were still locked together.

"See?" Rich started once he'd managed to catch his breath, "There was no need to worry about it; you were great."

Michael grinned a little, tucking his face against the back of Rich's neck. He pressed a little kiss to the mark he'd left behind, "Sorry 'bout this," he hummed.

Rich let out a breathy laugh, shifting back to cuddle against him, "Did it look like I was complaining?" he teased back.

Michael rolled his eyes, but settled his chin on Rich's shoulder, content to just spend time with him until his knot went down. "Couldn't tell, I was too busy fucking the best guy ever."

Rich answered by swatting at Michael tiredly, "Jus' shut up and cuddle me."

His Alpha was more than happy to oblige.

* * *

**  
  
  
**

Eventually, Michael's knot went down enough that he was able to pull out of Rich, watching in awe as their combined fluids began to slip down the sleeping Omega's thighs. He gently reached out to touch it, trailing his fingertips through the mess, if only to convince himself that this was real.

Rich let out a quiet groan as he woke up, legs quivering a little under his alpha's gentle touch. He peered over his shoulder, grinning a little at the transfixed expression on his alpha's face. "Wanna make it worse?" He rasped, voice still hoarse from earlier. 

"What did you have in mind?" Michael murmured, pressing a finger back into Rich, reveling in the surprised grunt that he'd knocked loose.

Rich bit his lip as he rolled onto his stomach, trying to contain the wrecked noises Michael was causing. He forced himself up onto his hands and knees, glancing back at Michael over his shoulder. "Come and get me,  _ Alpha _ ," he purred.

Michael growled a little eyes darkening as he moved into position behind Rich, wrapping his arms around his waist and sinking his cock back into him. His head tipped back, letting out a moan of his own to answer the omega's and finally letting himself sink fully into the haze brought on by his rut.

He leaned low over Rich's back, teeth sinking into the side if his neck as he started to pound into his Omega, vision blurring and mind going blank.


	20. Chapter 20

Michael groaned as his eyes opened, stretching leisurely as he sat up. His whole body felt warm and relaxed in a way it hadn't after one of his ruts before, but he felt so wholly comfortable that he almost wished to relive the week of discomfort.

He rolled onto one side, groping blindly for his glasses on the nightstand. He slipped on the familiar frames before glancing around to survey the damage. Michael's brows furrowed as he realized how pristine the basement still looked; there were no broken lamps or controllers, no torn beanbags, or rips in the couch cushions. "Huh," he mumbled, "I must've been pretty distracted…"

A slight shift on the bed behind him caught Michael's attention and he was quick to turn over to see what caused it. His first instinct was to chuckle at the sight of Rich's absurd bedhead, but his amusement was quickly whisked away as his eyes caught on the dark reddish-purple bruises covering Rich's neck and shoulders. His gaze followed the trail of hickeys down to where they disappeared under the blanket, presumably continuing on underneath.

He blinked, lifting the blanket only to quickly lower it again when he realized that he was still naked and put the pieces together. Michael started slowly shifting to get up so he could get dressed and freak out in peace.

Rich felt Michael shifting away from him and quickly wrapped his arms around the Alpha's waist, "Don't even think about moving." His arms tightened, burying his face in Michael's back.

Michael tensed at the unexpected contact, wiggling slightly in an attempt to free himself. "Rich, let go. I really need to go put pants on." He squirmed again, though he was careful to make sure that the blanket still covered him.

Rich grumbled, "That doesn't matter. You're my space heater. Clothes are irrelevant." He nuzzled against Michael's shoulder and sighed, content to go back to sleep.

"Rich," Michael huffed, "at least give me enough room to roll over." He squirmed away slightly, rolling over so he could face the Omega. 

The Omega let go and scooted back just a bit so Michael could turn over before his arms were back around the other. "This is better anyway."

Michael rolled his eyes, resigning himself that he wouldn't be moving for a while. He slid his arms around Rich and shifted closer, gaze drifting as he settled down. His eyes widened as they locked onto a healing bite wound on Rich's collarbone and as he realized what he'd done. "Rich, we have a problem."

Rich groaned, "What could possibly be wrong right now?" He buried his face in Michael's chest.

"Maybe this?" Michael lifted a hand and gently prodded the bite mark before cringing back, expecting Rich to snap at him once he realized what he'd done.

Rich tipped his head back and finally cracked an eye open to look at Michael. "I see no problem." He closed his eye again and snuggled back down into Michael's bed, hoping that would be the end of this conversation.

"That's because you can't see your own goddamn neck!" Michael retorted, "I don't know what you're thinking, but isn't just some hickey, Rich!"

"I know Michael." Rich sighed and rolled away onto his back and covered his eyes. "What's the problem?"

Michael looked down at Rich incredulously, "Rich, I  _ bit _ you! What  _ isn't _ the problem with that?" He sat up, running his hands through his hair anxiously.

"Michael, I asked you to. That's not a problem." He dropped his arms to his sides and turned his head and looked over to make eye contact with Michael.

Michael's brows furrowed, "You- you asked me to-?" He shook his head, trying to put his thoughts in order, "Rich, I fucking  _ Marked _ you! How isn't this a big deal to you? You're literally stuck with me for the rest of your life!"

Rich paused for a few seconds before shaking his head, "Nope, still not hearing a downside." He smiled and reached over to steal one of Michael's hands, the last traces of his heat still wearing off. "The only downside I see is now you're stuck with me, not the other way around."

Michael groaned, though he didn't protest as Rich took his hand, "That's not- Rich, we're only eighteen! What if you change your mind or you get sick of me and wish someone else had-?" His gaze lowered, "I don't know anything about being someone's Alpha. How could I possibly be good enough for you?"

Rich rolled his eyes, "You realize I don't know anything about being someone's Omega either, right? That doesn't matter though. We talked about this a few days ago. You're incredible. You're the one I want. You're the one I'm always going to want. The only thing that will change my mind is you changing yours." He squeezed Michael's hand and smiled at him.

Michael's brows furrowed in confusion, "Talked about it? Rich, I legitimately don't remember anything that happened since my rut started." He lifted their joined hands, looking down at them curiously. "What- what happened? While I was, uh, out of it?"

Rich blinked and pulled his hand away, realizing Michael might not even remember confessing. "Um, I guess that depends on what you remember. What is the last thing you remember?"

Michael's brows furrowed as he tried to think, "Uh, accidentally flirting with you when I dropped you off at Jake's and then locking myself in the basement? Why? What happened?"

Rich's eyebrows raised, surprised Michael didn't remember anything. "I tried to text you and you never answered. Jeremy and Jake told me what was going on and I was determined to keep you from being alone the whole time, so I came home. You were mad about that." He bit his lip and stopped for a moment, trying to get his thoughts together. "I didn't want to leave you alone so I camped out just outside the basement door in case you needed anything."

"But that doesn't explain how you ended up down here. Unless…" Michael paled as a realization dawned on him, "Oh God, Rich- I didn't  _ force _ you to come down here, did I?" He squared his shoulders and his jaw flexed as he resolved himself, "What happened next?"

Rich sat up and scrambled to grab Michael's hand and squeezed it tightly, "Nonononono! You didn't! I promise that's not how that went!" He quickly tried to straighten the story out in his mind, "I- I found the key to the basement on the floor and curiosity got the better of me. I unlocked the door and came down. You freaked out about me being down there and… told me you were falling in love with me…" He shook his head, beginning to talk faster as he began to doubt the truth of what happened, "I don't know if that was you or just the rut talking, but I gave you some time to calm down because you were mad just in case. I couldn't stop thinking about it, and then my heat started, and I couldn't resist coming down, so I told you the truth that I've loved you for a long time now, and eventually I convinced you to let me stay, and everything is kind of foggy after that, but I know I asked for this, but if you really don't want this, I'm sure there's something we can do."

Michael's shoulders slumped with relief as he realized he hadn't forced himself on Rich. Then he processed the rest of what the Omega had said, "I told you that I- wait, you  _ said it back _ ?!" Michael flopped back on his bed, hands coming up to cover his eyes. "Sounds like I missed quite the week, didn't I?" He huffed out a laugh, "So, um, what does this mean? You know, for… us?"

Rich shrugged, looking away. He sighed, "I don't know. I mean, if you don't want this, we can go talk to a doctor and see if we can find a way to reverse it, or whatever you want. If you'd rather not do this, I'm sure I can go stay at Jake's for a while so we can figure things out. I don't want you to feel like you have to stay with me just because I convinced you to mark me while we were both out of it." Rich wrapped his arms around himself, suddenly feeling very self conscious and vulnerable.

"No, that's not- I just-" Michael's brows furrowed as he tried to put his thoughts into words. He groaned, frustrated, before turning to face Rich. He placed a hand on either side of Rich's face and tugged him closer, pressing their lips together. He pulled away after a few seconds, just long enough for Rich to get the point, and immediately pressed his hands back over his face so Rich wouldn't see how flustered he was.

Rich blinked a few times, trying to process what was happening. Before he could, Michael's lips were gone. He then looked over and smiled, grabbing Michael's hands, "Oh, no no no, you don't get to hide that gorgeous face from me." He tugged at the Alpha's hands, grinning and chuckling.

Michael whined in protest, but he allowed Rich to tug his hands away from his face. He grinned shyly, "Stop doing that," he said. "My brain's already fucked up from the lack of adrenaline, I don't need you sitting there looking at me like that." The corner of his lips quirked up into a slight smirk, "Besides, you don't knock it off, you're going to end up with more hickeys to add to that collection of yours."

Rich laughed and smirked, "Michael Mell, is that supposed to be a threat?" He wrapped his arms around the Alpha and raised an eyebrow, "If so, you're going to have to try harder." He pressed his lips to Michael's gently.

Michael hummed contentedly, pulling away slightly so he could reply. "Wasn't a threat, it was a promise," he murmured, kissing him again briefly. He pulled away, shifting to get up, "And I'll keep it too. Later, though. I'm not sure when the last time we ate was and I'm getting the vague sense that it wasn't recently," he chuckled, getting to his feet and pulling on a pair of sweats so he could go make them something to eat.

Rich happily kissed him, to relieved to care about anything else. When Michael got up, Rich whined and flopped on the bed. "That can wait. Come back and cuddle me."

"Trust me, sweetheart," Michael blinked, surprised at how easily the term of endearment came to him. "You won't like me when I'm hungry. Let me go make breakfast, then we can cuddle some more, okay?"

Rich whined and sighed, "Fine, but hurry back." The moment Michael was no longer in sight, the Omega grabbed the blanket and rolled himself into a tight burrito.

Michael came back a few moments later with two plates in hand. He chuckled quietly, leaning against the door jamb as he watched his Omega. "You realize you're going to have to unravel to eat, right?"

Rich grumbled, having already dozed off in his fuzzy cocoon. He blinked, eyes barely peeking out of the blanket. "Sleep first," he mumbled, muffled by the blanket.

Michael rolled his eyes, crossing the room to sit on the bed next to the blanket burrito. "Come on, love, sit up and eat and then we can cuddle as much as you want, okay?"

Rich groaned and slowly started to squirm his way out of the bundle of fabric. "Fine, but be prepared to not move for hours. I will probably be sleeping the rest of this heat off until at least tomorrow."

"Alright, alright," Michael hummed, passing Rich a plate once his arms had been unraveled from his cocoon. "Eat first, sleep after." He leaned over slightly, pressing a kiss to Rich's temple, "You've gotta promise that you'll tell me if you want anything though."

Rich took the plate and smiled at the gentle kiss. "Oh, I'm sure you'll know if I need anything." He ate carefully, trying not to get anything in the nest he'd made on the bed. Slowly, his eyes started to droop, and before he could finish he jerked his head up, waking himself up enough to set his food on the bedside table.

Michael chuckled, scooting closer so he could wrap an arm around Rich's shoulders, guiding his head down to rest against Michael's shoulder. He proceeded to use his free hand to continue eating, while the other ran gently up and down the side of Rich's arm. "Goodnight, love," he whispered as he noticed Rich's eyes drifting closed.

Rich sighed softly as his head hit Michael's shoulder. His arms wrapped around his Alpha's waist, clinging to his. He tried to whisper "Goodnight," back, but it only came out as a mumbled hum as he quickly fell asleep again.

Michael hummed softly, finishing his food and setting aside his plate before laying back and pulling Rich down to settle beside him. He proceeded to pull a blanket over them before curling his arms back around Rich and quickly falling asleep.

* * *

  
  


Rich couldn't be sure how long he'd been asleep, especially considering they were in the basement with no light, and he didn't know what time he'd fallen asleep. He glanced around, searching for Michael who was nowhere to be found. He'd probably gone upstairs or to the bathroom or something. The Omega wasn't too concerned, but he did look around the room to search for any sign of his boyfriend. Across the room, he spied something else that was almost as good as having the Alpha with him. Michael's red hoodie was on the floor a few feet from the bed. The Omega smiled and squirmed out of the blankets and attempted to stand up for the first time in days. The moment his body weight shifted upright, his knees buckled, sending him crashing to the floor. Rich groaned and paused for a few seconds before trying to stand only to end up on the floor again. He rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling for a moment. With a huff, he cupped his hands around his mouth and hollered "MICHAEL!!!"

Michael froze as he heard Rich calling for him, it only taking a second for him to realize the situation and scrambling out of the shower. He skidded out of the bathroom, wet feet slipping against the floorboards as he tried to figure out what was happening. He paused, brows furrowed as his gaze fell on the downed Omega. "Uh, you alright there, bud?"

Rich huffed and glared up at his Alpha from the floor, "Doing great. Just enjoying the view of the dust bunnies and socks under your bed." The sarcastic Omega tapped his fingers on the floor for a couple seconds before he spoke again. "Do I look alright? I can't get up, and it's your fault."

Michael's brows furrowed as he made his way over to help Rich back into the bed, "How the hell is that  _ my _ fau-" he cut himself off as he realized what Rich meant. "Oh," he bit back a snicker.

"Yeah, ' _ Oh, _ ' is right." Once he was situated back on the bed, he curled up and huffed. "Well now what? I'm just stuck in bed from now on?"

Michael shrugged, trying to hide his grin, "I mean, you can do whatever you want," He turned away, starting to head back towards the bathroom now that he knew there was no imminent danger, "Just as soon as you can walk."

Rich pouted, "That's not funny, Michael! You wouldn't be laughing if you couldn't walk." He flipped over so his back was to the Alpha, wrapping himself tightly in the blanket.

"You can't tell me that you wouldn't at least chuckle if it was me," Michael retorted, shooting a grin over his shoulder at his Omega. "Besides, if it were me, I'd have inch-wormed my way over to the consoles and would be perfectly content sitting on my ass playing video games."

Rich shrugged, mumbling "I don't even care about video games right now. I just wanted your hoodie until you got back." He buried himself in Michael's sheets, inhaling deeply and closing his eyes.

"Oh my god, you're so dramatic," Michael rolled his eyes, grinning fondly as he crossed the room to pick up his hoodie and toss it at Rich, snickering as it landed over his head. Michael shook his head with a soft grin and made his way into the bathroom to resume his shower.

The Omega whined as the fabric covered his face before opening his eyes. He smiled and dragged the hoodie under the blanket, clinging to it with a sigh. It wasn't as good as snuggling Michael, but it was a good second best.


	21. After

A week later, school was back in session. Rich spotted Michael across the cafeteria, smiling as he made his way over and plopped down beside the Alpha. He pressed his shoulder against Michael's, feeling comfort in the contact after having been separated for the last few hours. "Is the day over yet?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Not quite yet, love," Michael replied with a soft smile, intertwining their fingers under the table. He flinched as Jake dropped his tray onto the table across from him before claiming his typical seat, followed shortly after by the girls and then by Jeremy, who took his usual seat on Michael's right side. Michael forced an uneasy smile, still not entirely sure how to bring up he and Rich's new relationship status.

Jake raised an eyebrow as he watched Rich, the Omega's mood too bright to be halfway through the first day back in school. "So, how was your break, Michael? You and Rich do anything fun?" He looked Michael directly in the eye, waiting to see how he reacted.

Michael raised an eyebrow, trying to determine whether Jake actually knew what had gone on or if he was just making conversation. "Just a lot of video games and pizza. I'm afraid not everyone spends their breaks throwing ragers like you do, Jake."

"Hey, I'll have you know, I kept it really lowkey this break. The biggest party I had was with all of you guys." Jake took another bite of his lunch before speaking again, "I mean, you guys didn't do  _ anything else _ ? Don't get me wrong, video games are fun, but you had to have done  _ something _ other than that." He smirked, eyes flicking from Michael to Rich.

Rich kept his eyes on his tray, not saying anything. If Michael didn't want anyone to know, he wasn't going to say anything, but he could tell from the start that Jake was very suspicious.

Michael chanced a glance over at Rich, somewhat surprised that he hadn't already interjected. He internally vowed that he'd make sure they talked about the privacy of their relationship once they were alone, before turning back to face Jake with a set poker-face, "I mean, there were a couple movie nights and one-on-one Nerf battles, but it was mostly Apocalypse of the Damned and Mario Kart."

Rich let go of Michael's hand under the table, switching back to eating with his right hand like normal. He didn't speak, smile having fallen slowly after Michael first responded. He wasn't going to out them if Michael wasn't comfortable with people knowing.

Jake shrugged, "Fair, I guess. Just figured you two might have done something more fun since you had the house to yourselves." He went back to eating, glancing over at his best friend, noticing how he seem much less happy. The tall Alpha hoped he hadn't misread things and caused trouble.

The corner of Michael's mouth lifted, the only sign that he was hiding something, "We had  _ loads _ of fun, that much I can guarantee." He smiled cheerily, not daring to look at Rich for fear that he'd burst out laughing. He subtly shifted his hand to Rich's thigh, squeezing it gently so he could be sure Rich knew that he wasn't hiding their relationship pointlessly.

Rich glanced out of the corner of his eye at Michael, his free hand coming to rest on top of his Alpha’s. Maybe they could chat before they went back to class. For now, he tried not to let anyone realize that something was up. He struck up a conversation with Brooke, interested in the trip she’d taken with her family to Florida. When he didn’t dare to hold Michael’s hand, he’d shift his foot over to nudge against the other’s just to keep some kind of contact. Before long, Rich made an excuse about needing something out of his locker and asked Michael to come with. Rich relaxed, sighing as the cafeteria doors closed behind them, “So, that was pretty awkward.” The Omega chuckled as he smiled at Michael.

"No kidding," Michael grinned, unable to keep himself from chuckling. "I mean, it kind of felt like Jake knew  _ something _ , but I know he couldn't have more than a suspicion since neither of us really talked to anyone before now…" Michael shook his head absently, glancing around to make sure that the halls were empty enough that they could talk privately. "I'm sorry if I made you feel like I was ashamed of us being together by not saying anything to the group earlier. I just- we hadn't talked about what we were going to tell people yet and I know you're out as bi and everything but, I don't know, I guess it feels like there's a really big difference between being out and being bonded to a  _ guy _ ." Michael sighed softly, running a hand through his hair as he tried to figure out how to say what he was thinking. "I want this to be your call. If you want people to know, it's up to you, okay? We can keep it between us if you want, or we can tell people, but it's your choice since it'll affect you the most."

Rich rolled his eyes, “At this point, the only thing that telling people will affect is that people will know we’re both off the market, not like anyone was beating down either of our doors before. My dad’s out of the picture permanently, and the bullying has pretty much completely stopped since you saved me from Dustin.” Rich’s fingers fiddled with the patch sewn inside his pocket, tracing his fingers around the circle and over each letter as he tried to explain, “The only reason I didn’t say anything and tried to pull away was because I know you still kind of like to keep to yourself. I didn’t want to push you into telling everyone if you weren’t ready for that yet.” He smiled and stepped closer, “If you want everyone to know, so do I. If you want to hold off for a bit, that’s fine too. I want you to be comfortable with all of this too.” Rich chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck, “And you know, as soon as Jenna knows, the whole school will know that we’re bonded. No going back after that.”

Michael nodded slowly, lost in thought. He looked up after a moment, a somewhat devious smirk on his lips, "What do you say we let them figure it out themselves?"

Rich smirked, “Sounds like a plan to me.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


A few minutes later, they made it back into the cafeteria and took their seats again. They rejoined the conversation so they didn’t raise suspicions. A few minutes later, Rich pulled his hoodie off, exposing the bite mark where his shoulder and neck met.

"And then I told Madeline that-" Jake paused as his eyes fell on his best friend, eyes widening as he processed what he was seeing. He leapt to his feet, slamming his hands down on the table, “I FUCKING KNEW IT!”

Michael grinned, enjoying the chaos that emerged at Jake's outburst as everyone at the table tried to figure out what was going on. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Jake." Michael's grin widened as he pulled he and Rich's joined hands out from under the table, setting their linked fingers on the table between them and cocking his head in such a way that it exposed the very edge of one of the hickeys previously covered by his hoodie. "Clearly there's absolutely nothing up. Everything's exactly the same as it always was."

Jake stared slack jawed for a moment before sitting down and giving an exaggerated frown. “Well, I’m hurt that you didn’t tell me Rich. I thought we were best friends.”

Rich chuckled, “Yeah, I may have deleted your number from both of our phones so Michael couldn’t make me call you to pick me up.”

“I guess that’s fair,” Jake said smiling.

"I don't!" Jeremy protested from the other side of the table, "Now they're going to gang up on me whenever we play War! I'll  _ never _ get rid of all the glitter!"

Michael couldn't help but laugh, grinning widely as he took in the reactions of his friends. Sure, they may tease them a bit, but they were happy for them. And even if they hadn't been, Michael knew it would be okay. After all, he knew that he could take anything that life had to throw at him because he knew he'd always have Rich by his side.


End file.
